Podcasts about heavenly father

WORD: ORDER This week we are studying, The Order of the Son of God, Doctrine and Covenants 106-108 in Come, Follow Me. You will find the word of the week, teaching tips, and more in our newsletter. Here's what to look forward to in this episode: JOY IN HEAVEN THE PATTERN OF JESUS UNLOCKING SPIRITUAL POWER BECAUSE YOU CAME UP We love studying with you! Grace and David You will find the word of the week, teaching tips, and more in our newsletter. Sign up here: www.dontmissthisstudy.com Videos can be found on YouTube: Don't Miss This Grace Freeman Instagram: @thisweeksgrace David Butler Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mrdavebutler/ Instagram: @mrdavebutler Come, Follow Me is a resource offered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is designed to be used in the home to support personal and family scripture study to build faith in Heavenly Father and His plan of salvation and in the Savior Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Come, Follow Me is self-contained and adequate, when used properly. Products and materials designed to supplement this resource, though they may be helpful in some instances, are not necessary for a successful home study program. Don't Miss This Team hello@dontmissthisstudy.com

Charlie Kirk's life has inspired me to share about Jesus more boldly. I strongly felt the Lord leading me to share on social media and this podcast how to become a Christian. The assassination of Charlie Kirk is sparking revival, many going back to church to find God. So let's make it clear how to come to Christ!Listen in to hear me share how to lead someone to the Lord or how to become a Christian on your own, if that is something you are desiring!If you pray the salvation prayer, please let me know! Salvation prayer: “Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus to the cross to pay off my sin debt. I repent of my sinful ways. Thank You for raising Jesus from the dead. I confess Jesus is Lord and my savior! By the blood of Jesus I am saved. In the name of Jesus, I pray!” Romans 10:9  “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”Testimony episodes mentioned:Ankle Injury Supernaturally Healed EpisodeSinging Voice Healed EpisodeFood Intolerances Healed EpisodeSevere Shoulder Pain and Breathing Healed EpisodeHeadache Healed EpisodeEating Disorder Recovery EpisodeExercise Addiction EpisodeConnect with Nyla:Nyla's IG ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Nyla's website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

hi, CWCOI family. things have been very heavy lately. i felt the burden to speak about what has been going on and remind you of what the truth is and what our duty is as a church during times of tragedy. we must choose love. we must share the truth of Jesus. and we have to rise up. now is the time. i love you all, and i'm so proud of you. keep being the hands and feet of our Heavenly Father. we are in this together. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

"My testimony evolved a lot after I became a father. I could now relate in a different way than I'd ever understood before to what I think our Heavenly Father views with us in the trials that we go through. I think He is up at night, tears in His eyes sobbing because He knows the pain that we're going through, but He also knows that we need to go through it. The pain is part of what teaches us so much. Oftentimes it turns us into who we are because of how stark those lessons are."00:00 Struggles with Faith and Health05:31 Health Crisis in the MTC08:08 Struggles with Church and Faith12:36 Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis25:29 Dealing with Resentment After Returning Home30:37 Advice for Early Returned Missionaries37:54 Mental Health and Youth Challenges44:09 Perfectionism and Parental PressureCozy Earth code COMEBACK for 40% off https://cozyearth.com/Mike's Auto Shackhttps://mikesautoshack.com/Serve Clothing code COMEBACK for 15% offhttps://serveclothing.com/If you have a story to share please contact ashly.comebackpodcast@gmail.comFor inquiries contact info.comebackpodcast@gmail.comCome Back Team:Director, Founder, & Host: Ashly StoneEditor: Cara ReedOutreach Manager: Jenna CarlsonAssistant Editor: Michelle BergerAssistant Editor: Britt SmallzeArt Director: Jeremy GarciaProduction Director: Trent Wardwell

Heavenly Father,I don't understand everything, but I trust you. I am tired of the cycle I am in (Acknowledging). Something has to change. Please protect, correct and reject anything in my life that is not your will (Ask). I am not where I need to be (Surrendering) but I trust the plan you have for me.  In Jesus Name. Amen.  (Prayer from Marriedforpurpose.com)

On Sunday, Pastor Mike shared how he was asking a simple question: “Lord, how do I respond as a pastor to everything happening right now?” What followed was a clear word from the Lord that led him to Exodus 17—a moment where God's people were under pressure, under attack, and spiritually dry. In that passage, Moses lifted his hands toward heaven as the battle raged, and victory came when hands were lifted—not in striving, but in surrender. From that passage, Mike heard God say, “The time for striking rocks is over. The time for touching thrones has begun.” This message is an invitation to shift our posture. To stop reacting and start abiding. To respond not with outrage, but with trust. And to step into a rhythm of prayer that brings renewal, unity, and life. Below is a prayer guide you can use as you respond this week:Prayer Guide:1. Praise: Honoring God's Faithfulness and Outpouring of His SpiritHeavenly Father, we lift our hands to You in awe and gratitude. You are faithful, and Your Spirit continues to move in our lives and in our generation. We praise You for Your presence, Your provision, and Your power that sustains us.Pray for:• Thank God for His faithfulness in every season, acknowledging that nothing in heaven or earth can thwart His plans.• Praise God for the outpouring of His Spirit, awakening hearts to new hunger and deeper intimacy with Him.• Declare God's victory over every Amalek attack, trusting His authority to protect, restore, and advance His Kingdom.• Celebrate the ways God has revealed Himself in past battles, remembering His power and mercy.• Invite God's presence to fill every room, heart, and community, allowing His life to flow freely.2. Confession: Surrendering Striving, Distrust, and ConflictLord, we confess the times we have not abided in You, striving in our own strength, doubting Your provision, and wrestling with anger or contention toward others. We recognize where we have partnered with thoughts that oppose Your will and disrupt Your peace.Pray for:• Confess personal striving instead of resting in God's timing and authority.• Confess distrust, doubt, or anxiety that limits our faith and hinders intimacy with You.• Ask for forgiveness for anger, quarreling, or holding bitterness toward others.• Renounce any agreements with pride, ego, or grumbling.• Pray for healing, humility, and restored alignment with God, so we walk fully in His presence and purpose.3. Intercession: Lifted Hands for Each Other and Our Broken WorldFather, we lift our hands in intercession, covering one another's vulnerabilities, lifting the burdens of our families, communities, and the world. We declare Your Kingdom come and Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.Pray for:• Pray for those around you, asking God to meet their deepest needs and protect their hearts.• Pray for comfort and hope in our relationships, families, communities, and country.• Ask God to pour out His presence in communities, awakening hunger for His presence and truth.• Pray for the defeat of the Amalek spirit and every force that seeks to steal joy, kill hope, or destroy destiny.• Declare healing, restoration, and unity, trusting God's authority and power to transform brokenness into new life.

Send us a textForgiveness—it's the heartbeat of our salvation, yet often the most challenging command to obey. This soul-stirring conversation dives deep into the transformative power of forgiveness not as a human achievement, but as God's work through willing vessels.When we attempt to forgive through our own strength, we inevitably fall short. But when we surrender to God's prompting, true healing begins. As one participant vulnerably shared, "It's not our power that we forgive, it's His, and when He prompts us, we only need to be obedient." This profound truth liberates us from the impossible burden of manufacturing forgiveness through limited human capacity.The discussion weaves through Romans 12:9-21, exploring the marks of genuine Christian character—particularly the counter-cultural call to "bless those who persecute you" and "overcome evil with good." Most striking is the revelation that many believers struggle to accept complete forgiveness: "The hardest thing for a Christian soul to believe is that they will never stand before God to give an account for any sin." This stunning reality challenges our tendency toward shame and self-condemnation.While the world drowns itself in distractions—entertainment, consumption, revenge—to maintain superficial joy, believers are called to vigilance. "We need to be surgical when it comes to sin in our lives," one speaker urges, rejecting comfort-focused spirituality for the transformative work of God's truth. Marriage emerges as a powerful example of this sanctifying process, described as "sacrificial love like no other. It is the Father's love that He has for us."Whether you're struggling to forgive someone who's wounded you deeply or battling to accept God's complete forgiveness in your own life, this conversation offers both challenge and comfort. Remember, as Jesus taught Peter, we're called to forgive not just seven times, but "seventy times seven"—reflecting the boundless mercy we've received from our Heavenly Father.The Balance of GrayFaith That Challenges. Conversations that Matter. Laughs included. Subscribe Now!Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the show

Listen into this Thursday night's sermon titled Fully Immersed preached by brothers Nick, Dylan, Wesley, and Caileb as they walk us through the immersion into our identity in Christ is a SON and DAUGHTER of the Living God. Empowered only by living through the Holy Spirit. Are you devoted to your Heavenly Father as He is to you? Go all in with your Father, your Savior, and dive head first into His body.

God Is Your Heavenly Father; and You Can Speak to Him, in Prayer, as if He Were Your Earthly Father MESSAGE SUMMARY: God is your Heavenly Father and the Creator of the Universe; however, you can talk to Him as your father, and remember that He loves you. Imagine climbing up into His lap and imagine Him wrapping His arms around you – He is God your loving father. As God tells you in 2 Samuel 7:14-15: “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you.". You need to start talking to God as the best dad there could ever be. Talk to Him about your life; your concerns; and your needs. You need to ask God for His counsel, and you need to ask Him questions regarding His will for your life.   TODAY'S PRAYER: Lord, you know how difficult it is for me to be in silence before you. At times it feels almost impossible, given the demands, distractions, and noise all around me. I invite you to lead me to a quiet, silent place before you — to a place where I can hear you as Elijah did. In Jesus' name, amen.     Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 123). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY'S AFFIRMATION: Today, Because of who I am in Jesus Christ, I will not be driven by Lust. Rather, I will abide in the Lord's Perfect Provision. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Matthew 6:7-15; Colossians 1:2-3;2 Corinthians 6:18; Psalms 69a:1-12. WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE: www.AWFTL.org. THIS SUNDAY'S AUDIO SERMON: You can listen to Archbishop Beach's Current Sunday Sermon: “The Power of God in Your Life” at our Website: https://awordfromthelord.org/listen/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB

The MTM Minute is a quick dose of inspiration with a powerful affirmation based on our weekly full-length episode.  And beginning this season, the MTM Minute will include a prayer of the week for 7 figure CEOs and 7 figure CEOs in the making.  That's right, you don't have to choose – you can love God AND make millions. This week, in our full-length episode, Set Boundaries Like a Boss  I shared tips and techniques to protect your time, energy and millions.  Click the link above to listen. This week's 7 Figure CEO Affirmation is "I set boundaries like a boss, confidently protecting my time, energy, and focus. I no longer overcommit or say yes out of obligation; instead, I honor what truly serves my vision and growth. My worth is not defined by what I give, but by who I am, and I create space for abundance and success to flow freely into my life. As I enforce my boundaries, I create the structure I need for my business to thrive, and my success unfolds with ease and clarity." Here are three actionable tips to anchor in this week's affirmation Set and Enforce Boundaries: Identify areas in your life or business where you feel drained or overcommitted. Start by setting clear boundaries around your time and energy. Practice saying "no" to low-priority tasks and distractions and protect your time for high-leverage activities that align with your growth goals. Schedule Downtime: Treat your rest as an essential part of your business strategy. Block out time on your calendar each week for rest and reflection. This helps you recharge, improve your decision-making, and keep your focus sharp for the tasks that matter most. Align Actions with Priorities: Reevaluate your daily activities and ensure they align with your long-term goals. Focus on what will produce results, and delegate or eliminate anything that drains your energy or takes you off track. This will help you maintain momentum while protecting your energy. Affirm with me: "I set boundaries like a boss, confidently protecting my time, energy, and focus. I no longer overcommit or say yes out of obligation; instead, I honor what truly serves my vision and growth. My worth is not defined by what I give, but by who I am, and I create space for abundance and success to flow freely into my life. As I enforce my boundaries, I create the structure I need for my business to thrive, and my success unfolds with ease and clarity." And this week's journal prompts are: The boundary I need to set this week to protect my time, energy, and focus is..." "Today, I commit to saying no to in order to honor my priorities and growth is…" Before the week is over, I will schedule some downtime to… And your prayer of the week: Heavenly Father, We thank You for the opportunity to grow, expand, and step into the powerful leaders You have called us to be. We ask that You help us establish and honor boundaries that protect our time, energy, and focus. Grant us the wisdom and courage to say no to distractions and yes to the growth opportunities that align with our purpose. We pray for clarity in prioritizing what matters most, trusting that as we set boundaries, we are creating the space needed to receive the abundance and success You have prepared for us. Guide our decisions and help us lead with integrity, purpose, and grace. In Your name, we pray. Amen. Ready to shift the statistics in your favor by joining the top 4.2% of all business generating 7 figures or more a year?  If you are a small business owner or entrepreneur who has crossed six figures and you're ready to play bigger, we are on a mission to help you make the move to millions.  Visit movetomillions.com to learn all the ways we can equip you to make, move and leave millions.   Want more of Darnyelle? Personal Brand Website: https://www.drdarnyelle.com Company Website: https://www.incredibleoneenterprises.com Move to Millions Website: https://www.movetomillions.com   Social Media Links: Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/darnyellejerveyharmon Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darnyellejerveyharmon Twitter/X: http://www.twitter.com/darnyellejervey LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/darnyellejerveyharmon  Links Mentioned in the Episode: Movetomillions.com MovetoMillionsGroup.com HausofMillions.com Move to Millions Continuum Episode Move to Millions Live 2026 Subscribe to the Move to Millions Podcast: Listen on iTunes Listen on Google Play Listen on Stitcher Listen on iHeartRadio Listen on Pandora Leave us a review Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you're not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don't want you to miss an episode. I'm adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you're not subscribed there's a good chance you'll miss out on those. Now if you're feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they're also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you!

What a tragedy it is when there is a loss of spiritual identity.  I believe you can lose your true identity, give it away, forget it, waste it, or change it for better or worse.  It's also possible that some individuals go through life searching for their true identity and never find it.Main Points:1. If you don't know who you are, then you are vulnerable to other people telling you who you are.  But the concrete, solid, gospel truth is that as a follower of Jesus, you are who God says you are, and no one else has a vote in the matter.2. The phrase “in Christ” is used about 140 times in the Bible.  We are said to be “in Christ.”  It is the most used term to describe a follower of Jesus.  God's Word is saying to us that if you are trusting Jesus Christ as your savior and Lord, “You are in Christ.”  This is your new identity!  This is who God made you to be.  This is the real you!3. Reject any label the world tries to give you. As a believer in Jesus, your Heavenly Father has given you your true identity as a child of God.Today's Scripture Verses:John 1:12 - “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”Galatians 2:20 - “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”Quick Links:Donate to support this podcastLeave a review on Apple PodcastsGet a copy of The 5 Minute Discipleship JournalConnect on SocialJoin The 5 Minute Discipleship Facebook GroupLoren Hicks on Instagram

When life feels overwhelming and your heart is troubled, Psalm 4:8 reminds us of God’s promise: “In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.” In this devotional, Alexis A. Goring shares a personal story of how God used the song “I Will Rest in You” by Jaci Velasquez to bring peace in the middle of anxiety. Through Scripture, prayer, and resting in God’s presence, we are reminded that we can lay our burdens down and trust that He never abandons us. ✨ Highlights God never leaves us — He promises to be with us always (Hebrews 13:5, Matthew 28:20) Honesty in prayer matters — God invites us to bring our deepest pain and struggles to Him (Psalm 62:8, Hebrews 4:13) God is our safe place — No matter how uncertain life feels, His presence offers protection and peace (Romans 8:35-39) Resting in Him — By casting our cares on God (1 Peter 5:7), we can release our anxiety and sleep in peace, knowing He never sleeps (Psalm 121:4) Practical encouragement — Share your heart with God, meditate on His promises, and trust Him to handle what you cannot

In this sermon, we explore the story of Jesus and his interaction with Simon the Pharisee and the 'sinful woman'. We see that all debtors have one thing in common when it comes to God; NONE OF THEM CAN PAY THEIR DEBT whether it be BIG or small. We also learn that Jesus never turns down an invitation, and just how good and gracious our Heavenly Father really is!

Blessed Father's Day to all our amazing fathers and father figures! Today, we unpack a familiar story in the Bible that Jesus tells about a particular father–a good father. Through the father in his story, Jesus illustrates the heart of our Father in Heaven. We pray that you will gain a fresh revelation of our Heavenly Father and a fresh vision of what it means for us to be fathers and father figures in the lives of others! Stick around as we hear from a panel of fathers from our church, sharing their lessons, challenges, and stories of God's goodness in their journey of fatherhood. We hope you have a blessed service!

As Christians, we are children of God and therefore we need to set an example for everyone around us of what it looks like to obey our Heavenly Father. There are always others watching how we live, especially children, and many will imitate us. We must instruct them to honor God in the way they live by living it out in our own lives.

Our daughter is all grown up now, but she'll never forget that very scary moment when she was four years old. My wife was shopping in a supermarket with our son riding in the grocery cart and our daughter walking with her - well, actually running ahead of her. Karen had warned her to stay in the same aisle she was in, but we're talking a firstborn here - so she had to run ahead to other aisles to explore, of course. Until suddenly she noticed how high those shelves were and how long those aisles were, and the fact that she didn't see anything familiar. And suddenly she felt that awful feeling that she still describes today as "scary" - she was lost. Not too long ago, she told me how it felt. As a grown woman, she said, "Suddenly my security wasn't there." Thankfully, her mother came looking for her. Our daughter got lost, but someone who loved her found her. I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "I Once Was Lost...." Lost isn't just a feeling that little kids know. No, a lot of us who are all grown up know it all too well. The dictionary says that "lost" means "bewildered as to direction; missed the way." You ever felt that way? Now, maybe? It could be that, like our daughter said, suddenly your security isn't there. There's been a breakup, a divorce, changes at work or in your family, a painful loss, a financial setback, some major change. Interestingly enough, our Creator describes us as lost. We're bewildered about the meaning, the direction of our life because we've, Well, like the dictionary says, "missed the way." You and I have missed what we were made for - a life run by God - and we've wandered off into a life run by us. Like our daughter separated from her mom, you suddenly realize the person you need most isn't there - the God who made you. You're away from your Father, your Heavenly Father. And, again, like a lost child, there's no way you can find your way back to Him. Your only hope is that He's come looking for you and that's what Jesus is all about. He's God come looking for you. In our word for today from the Word of God - Luke 19:10 - Jesus says, "The Son of Man (that's Him) came to seek and to save what was lost." Jesus literally gave His life to bring you home; He absorbed your death penalty for all your sin when He died on the cross. And now He's coming seeking you to save you - right now through this visit He may be doing that. It's really Jesus, who knows your need, coming where you are, through this program, to bring you home. Here's a letter that I received from a man who experienced that. He tells about commuting to work one winter morning. He says, "This hour and one half ride is really getting to be a drag - too much time to think. Thinking about one divorce and a second marriage, never enough money, can't afford a new car and this one may not even make it home." Then again, what if he doesn't make it home? Is this what life is about? Drive-work-sleep, then drink myself into oblivion to numb the monotony? He is painfully aware of a growing emptiness - something's missing - actually everything is missing! He tells how he started surfing the radio and he landed on this program and he says, "You directed me to the One who would give my life meaning. Without that, it was quite possible I would not be here now." See, Jesus found this man through a radio. And this man finally found everything he'd been missing. For someone listening right now, that's what Jesus wants to do for you this very day, this very hour. Would you open up to this man who gave His life for you? You can trust Him with the rest of your days. Would you say, "Jesus, You died for me. You love me. You're alive! You walked out of Your grave. Come into my life. I'm yours." Our website will tell you how to be sure you've begun that relationship. You can go to ANewStory.com. Jesus loves you too much to lose you. He went all the way to a cross to prove it and right now He's come where you are to bring you home. Don't miss Him, my friend.

As Christians, we are children of God and therefore we need to set an example for everyone around us of what it looks like to obey our Heavenly Father. There are always others watching how we live, especially children, and many will imitate us. We must instruct them to honor God in the way they live by living it out in our own lives. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/640/29

In a world where we often care deeply about trivial matters, we need to refocus on what truly matters eternally. After salvation, baptism stands as the first crucial step of obedience for believers. It serves as a public declaration of faith, symbolizes the death of our old self and birth of new life in Christ, and brings joy to our Heavenly Father. Baptism isn't just a religious ritual but a command from Jesus and an act of love toward Him. For those who have accepted Christ but haven't been baptized, the question remains: what are you waiting for?

Send us a textMario Izzo - Entrepreneur / Founder of Izzo Pro (video strategy services, photography, podcast services and music production) - shares his testimony and marketplace faith including how speaking of God and “the universe” emboldened an acquaintance to pour into him; not wanting to disappoint his Heavenly Father; his father and mother planting seeds; the impact of his “Nonna” praying for him; how having a tough dad made him want to please; what repentance actually is; praying for enemies; how his faith journey has affected relationships; the influence of his father being an entrepreneur; starting out as a wedding videographer; being in a rock band with his brothers; the power of prayer and divine appointments at Disneyland; how God showed up during his stroke and his daughter's brain surgery; praying God's will; consulting God in his business; and much more! https://www.izzopro.com/Support the show

WORD: ENDOWMENT This week we are studying, After Much Tribulation Cometh the Blessing, Doctrine and Covenants 102-105 in Come, Follow Me. Here's what to look forward to in this episode: WHAT DO WE DO? FROM THIS VERY HOUR THE STRENGTH OF MY HOUSE A MULTIPLICITY We love studying with you! Grace and David You will find the word of the week, teaching tips, and more in our newsletter. Sign up here: www.dontmissthisstudy.com Videos can be found on YouTube: Don't Miss This Grace Freeman Instagram: @thisweeksgrace David Butler Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mrdavebutler/ Instagram: @mrdavebutler Come, Follow Me is a resource offered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is designed to be used in the home to support personal and family scripture study to build faith in Heavenly Father and His plan of salvation and in the Savior Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Come, Follow Me is self-contained and adequate, when used properly. Products and materials designed to supplement this resource, though they may be helpful in some instances, are not necessary for a successful home study program. Don't Miss This Team hello@dontmissthisstudy.com

What happens when a man grows up without a father, yet is called to lead as one?   This week on The Super Human Life, Coach Frank Rich is joined by Pastor Ralph Johnson, a Husband, Father, Pastor, Educator, Leadership Coach, and co-host of the Altared Manhood Podcast. With over 35 years of leadership experience across the military, government, private sector, and ministry, Ralph now serves as Leadership Development Pastor at Grace Family Church in Tampa, FL, where he equips staff and volunteers across multiple campuses.   Ralph knows firsthand what it means to grow up fatherless. His story of overcoming the wounds of an absent dad and learning to lead his family by God's design will challenge and inspire you to break the cycle in your own life.   Together, Coach Frank & Ralph dive deep into: The biggest lies fatherless men believe about their role and identity as dads.   How our relationship with the Heavenly Father shapes the way we father at home.   The difference between being “a dad” and biblical fathering.   Why forgiveness is essential & how to release an absent or abusive father.   The power of mentorship and community for men who didn't have a model to follow.   Ralph's personal journey from brokenness to purpose and how he's helping launch the Fatherless Fathers movement.   This episode isn't just about fatherhood—it's about identity, healing, and legacy. If you've ever wondered how to become the father you never had, this conversation is for you.  

Special Patreon Release: Wisdom from a Homeschooling Dad with Steve Lambert   Luke 6:40 (NI) "The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher."   *Transcription Below*   Questions and Topics We Discuss: What are some wonderful aspects of your lifestyle that are not available to families who are not home educating their children? What are some common questions you get about homeschool and what truth do you have to replace the myths? How long will prep take for the homeschooling parent and what does a typical schedule look like?   Steve Lambert has worn many hats in his 73 years: Pastor, author, speaker, stock broker and more. Together, he and his wife Jane Claire Lambert created and publish "Five in a Row" homeschool curriculum which has been a reader's choice favorite for nearly 30 years. They began homeschooling their children in 1981 and their seven grandchildren were homeschooled as well.   Five in a Row Website   Thank You to Our Sponsors: Chick-fil-A East Peoria and Savvy Sauce Charities   Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook, Instagram or Our Website   Gospel Scripture: (all NIV)   Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”   Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”   Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”   Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”   Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”   Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”   John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.”   Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”   Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“   Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“   Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”   *Transcription*     Music: (0:00 – 0:08)   Laura Dugger: (0:09 - 1:37) Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here.   I want to say a huge thank you to today's sponsors for this episode, Chick-fil-A East Peoria, and Savvy Sauce Charities.   Are you interested in a free college education for you or someone you know?   Stay tuned for details coming later in this episode from today's sponsor, Chick-fil-A, East Peoria.   You can also visit their website today at Chick-fil-A.com/EastPeoria.   I'm excited to introduce you to my fascinating guest, Steve Lambert.   Steve has a unique perspective, as he has worn various hats, such as pastor, author, speaker, stockbroker, and more.   But today, we're going to hear various stories of how God has been faithful in calling he and his wife, Jane, to homeschool, and also publish homeschool curriculum called Five in a Row.   Regardless of our family schooling choice, these stories will build up our faith and remind us who we get to turn to in all things.   Here's our chat. Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, Steve.   Steve Lambert: (1:37 - 1:39) Good morning. It's great to be with you, Laura.   Laura Dugger: (1:40 - 1:53) Well, you are a part of a multi-generational homeschooling family.   So, will you begin our time by taking us back to that initial decision that you and your wife made to home educate your children?   Steve Lambert: (1:54 - 3:31) Sure, I'd love to. We made that decision back in 1981. I'm sure probably you and many of your listeners were not even born in 1981. But my wife came to me and she said, "So, hypothetically, what would you think if…” and my response was something like, "That cannot possibly be legal."   Because at that point, we knew no one who homeschooled. We never met a homeschooler.   I don't, you know, it was just completely foreign to my understanding. But I began to pray about it.   And as I did, I felt like the Lord said, "You're accountable for how you raise your children."   And I thought, well, if I'm accountable, then I ought to have some idea of how they're being raised.   Because, frankly, in a classroom, 95% of their lives are spent there in the classroom.   And they get home on the activity bus at 5:15 and eat dinner and go up and do their homework.   And that's the end of the day. And so, I thought, alright, maybe that's a good plan.   Now, parenthetically, let me add that it wasn't until a couple of years later, I felt like the Lord spoke to me and said, "And your children are accountable for how they turn out," which was profoundly important to me at the time.   Because we've all known great families who produce train wrecks for kids.   And we've known some train wreck parents who produce great kids. But we're accountable for how we raise our kids.   And I thought, if I'm going to have to sit for the final exam before the Lord of Heaven, I'd like to at least have some input in some part and at least know how they were raised. So, that was beginning in 1981.   Laura Dugger: (3:32 - 3:43) That is incredible, because you had no idea.   I'm even getting goosebumps just thinking now of where your family is at from that decision.   And could you catch us up to speed? How many children do you have?   Steve Lambert: (3:44 - 4:25) We had two daughters. We kind of left that in the Lord's hand. And that's what we ended up with. And my wife would have loved to have more, but we ended up with two daughters.   And between them, they have six daughters and one grandson. So, we have seven grandkids.   Several of them are through homeschooling now, college or career. The youngest at this point is six.   So, they're third-generation homeschoolers, which I think speaks to the validity of the homeschooling option for many people. You know it's worked successfully when your children want to homeschool their children rather than running as far away from homeschooling as they could possibly get.   Laura Dugger: (4:27 - 4:38) Well, and even going back then to 1981, you were questioning at that point, is this even legal?   So, catch us up. At that time, were there any legalities that you were up against?   Steve Lambert: (4:40 - 8:42) Then, like now, it really does depend on the state where you reside.   And Missouri has always been fairly homeschool-friendly. That said, within about a year after we began, our oldest daughter had been in public school in K-1 and had been in a private Christian school for one semester of second grade before we began the decision to homeschool.   And someone, presumably a family member I suspect, turned us into Family Services for Educational Neglect Child Abuse.   So, we had that dreaded knock at the door, and DFS came and had to inspect the children, make sure that they weren't bruised or harmed in any way, and then begin kind of the prosecutorial process against us.   But eventually they realized they really didn't have much say, so they turned the case over to the superintendent of schools.   And we happened to live in the same district where Jane and I had become high school sweethearts.   So, we hired an attorney, and we went and had a meeting with the superintendent of schools.   I often tell the story and describe him as being an older gentleman.   Now, in reality, compared to me today at age 73, he was probably only 60. He was a young fellow of about 60. But when you're 30, that seems pretty old.   And he had a couple of PhDs in education and administration, and he said, "You know, I strongly disagree with the choice you've made," but unfortunately, we had had our daughter tested using standardized testing just prior to that, and he compared her test scores after a year of homeschooling with her test scores when she had been in his public school classrooms, and she had improved significantly in every subject area.   So, he said, "I'm not going to cause you any problems, but I still think you're making a serious mistake." And the footnote to that story was lived out less than a year later when my phone rang, and it was the superintendent of schools.   And he said, "Mr. Lambert, can I speak with you frankly?" And I thought, oh boy, here we go. He said, "I don't know if you're aware of this, but we're having some problems in public education."   And I said, "No, not, I can't believe that. Really, doctor?"   And he goes, "No, we really are. Test scores are declining. Parents are unhappy. Faculties are unhappy. Administrations are unhappy. Students are unhappy. And I put together a blue-ribbon panel of educational experts for six weeks this summer to discuss how can we reface and reimagine education in our district. And you seem to have a very unique perspective on education, Mr. Lambert. Would you consider being a part of that panel?"   And I said, "I would."   And so, I went to the first meeting. They all introduced themselves and they all had lots and lots and lots of letters after their name.   One was the director of curriculum development, another the director of elementary testing, another the director of high school counseling.   And finally, I introduced myself and said, "Hi, I'm Stephen Lambert. I'm a homeschool dad." And every head in the room turned to look at me sitting in the back because up until that point, as far as I know, none of those men and women had ever seen a homeschooler and lived to tell about it.   So, they began the journey. The first night of the discussion and the person in charge of the summer series said, "You know, we can all make a long list of things that are wrong with public education, but let's not start there. Let's start on a positive note as we explore this difficult topic. Number one, responsibility for educating children rests with the state."   And I raised my hand and I said, "That's not right."   And he said, "What do you mean that's not right?"   And I said, "No, the responsibility for raising and educating children rests with their parents and only insofar as they choose to delegate some or all of their authority to you, does the state have anything to say about it?"   And he said, "Let's take a brief recess." So, it's probably just as well that I didn't tell him that God told me that because that would have made his head explode completely.   But anyway, that was 40 years ago. So, lots of water under the bridge since then in public education, I'm sorry to say has not gotten better, but instead it's gotten worse.   Laura Dugger: (8:44 - 9:07) Well, and I think within that, you've even brought up some questions that people have about homeschooling families when you first were talking about the standardized tests.   So, do you get these questions? A lot of times, do your children have any friends?   Did they grow up socialized or how did they compare to their peers?   Those types of things that there may be an underlying myth.   Steve Lambert: (9:09 - 11:20) Oh, for sure. Those are the common questions. I was so ignorant of homeschooling in 1981 that I didn't even notice. I didn't even know the word socialization.   I was too ignorant to even know that, but I did know friendship.   And in fact, I prayed and I asked the Lord, I said, "How are my kids going to have friends if they're homeschooled?"   And as you and some of your listeners may understand, I felt like the Lord spoke to me, not audibly, but in a sense that I clearly understood his heart.   And he said, "Do you want friends for your children?"   And I said, "Yes, Lord, of course I do more than anything."   And he said, "And so friends come from being in the midst of people." And I went, yes.   And then I paused and I could sense him kind of waiting on me. And I said, "Don't they?"   And I felt like the Lord said, "No, if you want friends for your children, ask me. I'm the author of friendship."   And he reminded me of David and Jonathan, for example.   He said, in my imagination, at least he said, "This very night, I can hear the prayers of tens of thousands of people around the earth who are surrounded by people, but who are contemplating suicide this very night because they're so lonely. Friends don't come from being in large groups. Friends come from heaven, ask me."   And so, that became a prayer. And neither of our children, none of our grandchildren have ever lacked for friends, lots of friends, close and intimate friends through sports, through music, through their church connections.   And it really has turned out to be true that friendship, whether you're an adult, a child, or a teen, if you're lacking friends in your life right now, getting involved in more and more people and more and more busyness isn't necessarily the answer.   Just stop and ask the Lord, "Lord, I'm lonely. I need some friends in my life. Would you bring me some?"   And our daughter's first close friend, after I prayed that prayer was a number of months later.   It was a little girl who had immigrated all the way from South Africa.   Her father had immigrated to the United States after becoming a believer to attend a Bible college and then came to Kansas City to attend a seminary.   And his daughter became my daughter's best friend, but she came from halfway around the globe.   And since then, there've been so many that we couldn't count them all.   Laura Dugger: (11:22 - 11:49) Wow. Steve, that is such a powerful and encouraging parenting tip, really just in every phase that we know where to turn and that God is the one who actually has the power to make these prayers answered.   So, thank you for sharing that. What would you say are some wonderful aspects of your lifestyle that were not available to families who were not home educating their children?   Steve Lambert: (11:50 - 14:20) You get to see your kids come to life, to discover who they are and why they were made and to watch them learn to read and to watch them explore and discover God's amazing creation in the world around them.   You can travel with your kids. If you're homeschooling, you can take them wherever you go and you can have school in the car or school in the park or school at the lake.   My kids, instead of reading about some of the national parks and reading about some of the great museums in America, we went and we saw them firsthand and in the process we got to see them begin to blossom and figure out who they were and why they were created.   We're seeing with all that's happening today, a struggle that really so much boils down to children and teenagers and young adults having absolutely no idea who they are and they're questioning everything from their gender to their faith, to philosophy, to finances, to all those kinds of ecological issues.   They really have no idea who they are and it's because in the classroom, nobody ever teaches them.   You know, it says in Luke 6:40, "that a student is not greater than his teacher, but when he is fully trained, a student will be like his teacher."   Discipleship is really about teaching and if you're not disciplining your children, somebody is.   And in a public-school classroom, the wisdom of Dr. Luke suggests that your children will grow up to be just like their teachers and that's exactly what we're seeing in today's culture.   So, if you want to have some input, if you want to see your children blossom, I mean, there's nothing more exciting than seeing your children learn to read for the first time and it's not that difficult.   I mean, I often tell parents if you were trapped on a desert island, just you and your child, could you teach them to read?   Well, sure you could. You take a stick and you make the letter A in the sand and you'd say, this is an A and then this is a B and this is the number two and this is the number three.   There's nothing more rewarding at the end of life. And I can say this at age 73, I can say this without any reservation.   The single most important thing you can do is to trust your life to Jesus.   The second most important thing you can do is find somebody who's like-minded and marry them and make that marriage work through thick and through thin.   And the third most important thing you'll ever do is raising your children and watching them become the men and women God created and take their place in a dying culture.   Laura Dugger: (14:22 - 14:42) And you have years of wisdom journeying through being a homeschooling dad.   And so, again, I would love to hear more about your journey. So, if we go back to 1981, I'm assuming that all of the curriculum was not available that we have available today.   And so, how did you and your wife practically live this out?   Steve Lambert: (14:44 - 22:14) Well, you're right, Laura. There wasn't any of the curriculum, which in many respects was a blessing.   To be honest, there's so much material out there today. It's a little overwhelming.   If you go to some of the larger homeschool conventions, you can find as many as seven or 800 vendors there, each telling why their particular curriculum is the one that you ought to choose.   But back then there were no choices. And in fact, we contacted a couple of Christian curriculum publishers and asked to buy their materials.   And they said, "No, we can't sell you because that would upset our Christian school customers because they had the exclusive right to this material."   And so, we began with a old set of world books and a stack of children's reading books.   And I think we did go to the yard sale, and we found an American history book that was published, I think in 1943. And so, it was somewhat incomplete because it didn't explain who won World War II.   It just kind of ended in the middle of the war, but we began that journey.   And what we discovered was that God consistently brought us the tools, the resources, and the people that our children needed.   I would come home on certain days and I'd find Jane kind of crying in her bedroom and the girls crying in their bedroom.   And because they were, we were trying to replicate school at home. And that's completely the wrong direction.   Well, it turns out we didn't want school at home. We wanted homeschooling, which is an entirely different proposition.   And so, on that journey, Jane began to pray. And she said, "Lord, this is not what I had in mind for our children. I did not imagine that we would be fighting and arguing over. You will do your homework. I won't. You can't make me. Yes, I can. How can I teach my children?"   And he said, "Why don't you read to them?" And she said, "Well, I do read to them, but how can I teach them?"   And he said, "Why don't you read to them?" She said, "No, no, I understand. I love to read to them, but how do I teach them?"   And he said, "Why don't you read to them?" And so, after the third time, they began focusing more on reading aloud.   And that just naturally led to the entire world around us. It doesn't really matter what you're reading.   God gave educators and parents a secret weapon, and it's called curiosity.   And so, if you can engage that curiosity and you read them a story, it doesn't matter what three bears, and suddenly they want to know more about bears.   And how does this hibernation thing work and where do they live? And do we have any near our home?   And can you find bears? And what's the difference between a black bear and a grizzly bear? And how long do they live? And what do they eat?   And suddenly you become the guide rather than the opposing force.   Suddenly you begin to sit on the same side of the desk with your students and you go on a learning journey together, because particularly in those early years up to middle school, really the only lessons, the lesson that you really need to teach children is to fall in love with learning.   If they learn that you're home free, because they will self-direct and self-educate right on through high school, graduate school, they'll be lifelong learners.   But if you reduce education to nothing more than carrots and sticks and dangling promises and threats, they will quickly learn that learning is not fun.   And we just need to get through this as quickly as we can so that we can get on with life and the things that are truly important.   And if you doubt that, I often tell parents who are contemplating homeschooling, if you doubt that, just look in the mirror, go back and just think about, for example, your fifth grade social studies exam.   Tell me who the Norman Conqueror was. When did the Norman Conquest take place? How did that change European history?   And you'll say, wow, I remember. I've heard of the Norman Conqueror, the Norman Conquest, but honestly, I don't remember it yet.   Why not? Because honestly, I just learned it long enough to take the test. And then I forgot. And your kids are just like you. Many attribute Einstein with the saying that doing the same thing the same way and expecting some sort of a different result is insane.   So, it stands to reason if you teach your kids the same way you were taught to memorize names and dates and highlight pages and books for Friday's quiz, they'll end up with the same results.   They won't particularly be interested in learning. They won't remember 99% of all the things that you checked off your checklist that you covered with the children, but they don't remember any of it.   So, through reading, that opened the door for the girls to begin to ask questions.   And suddenly, like I said, instead of being in that tug of war, where as a parent or a teacher, you're trying to force children to memorize and regurgitate long enough to take a test, you suddenly become a resource person and you take them to the library and you take them to the natural history museum and you take them to the art gallery and you take them on nature hikes in the woods.   And one question always begets ten more. I remember that when my oldest daughter, her firstborn was about two or three and she was getting ready for bed and in the bathtub and she said, "Mama, can I ask you a question?"   And my daughter said, "No." She said, "Please, mama, just one question."   She said, "No, honey, you've already had your 472 questions for today. Mama's exhausted. Finish your bath. Let's go to bed. You can ask a question tomorrow."   She said, "Please, mama, please. Just one more question." She said, "All right, one more question. And then it's bedtime."   She goes, "Okay. So, like, how does electricity work, mom?"   So, that curiosity that God gave those children is the spark that makes homeschooling, not only a joy, but makes it infinitely doable.   Whether you dropped out of high school or whether you have a doctorate in education, if you can keep that curiosity alive, your kids are going to be great.   And let me add one other thought. We live in a world, the dean of a medical school, school of medicine at a university told me not too long ago, he said, "Do you realize that the body of knowledge of the human body doubles every year?"   We learned more in 2022 about the human body than we had learned in all of history through 2021. And he said, we get the best and the brightest, the top one tenth of 1% who come here to medical school.   And there's no way they can possibly keep up with the amount of new knowledge that's being developed.   And if you ask someone who has a doctorate in any subject, the most tempting question to ask is, so you must know pretty much everything there is to know about that.   And if they're even remotely honest, the first thing they'll say to you is, "Oh no, no, no, no. The farther we explore, the deeper we get, the more we realize we haven't even scratched the surface. There's so much we don't understand. The more we learn, the more we realize how much we yet have to learn."   And so, that's an infinite loop of getting children to begin to manage their own education. We've said for years, you know, he got the best education money could buy, or they gave him the best education.   You can't give a child an education. They're education resistant.   The child has to learn to want to know, to be hungry and thirsty to know more about the world that God created around them and how it works.   And homeschooling is a wonderful vehicle to make a lifetime learning out of your son or your daughter.   Laura Dugger: (22:15 - 28:23) And now a brief message from our sponsor.   Did you know you can go to college tuition free just by being a team member at Chick-fil-A East Peoria?   Yes, you heard that right. Free college education. 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Now, back to the show.   The more I learn about homeschooling, the more encouragement I've heard from homeschooling parents, they will talk about there is always a learning gap no matter how you were educated.   And so, I love how you're addressing that with lifelong curiosity that we will continue learning our whole life.   But you also mentioned this word, if parents are considering homeschooling, you said it's so doable.   And when you're talking about Jane hearing from the Lord, read to your children, I find that so encouraging.   That's my favorite activity to do with our girls. That was the impetus for your family launching Five in a Row.   Is that right?   Steve Lambert: (28:24 - 32:17) That is right. Over a period of time, Jane certainly did math mechanics in a math workbook, and she used some specific structured approach to phonics to teach reading.   But other than that, it was largely an open palette in which reading helped direct the course of education.   And that became something that many of her homeschool friends as the years went by found enviable.   They said, "You know, how does that work?" And she said, "Well, you just read aloud to your children, and then there's opportunities in an illustrated book to talk about the illustrations, the perspective, vanishing point, type of colors, the difference between watercolor and gouache, complementary colors on the color wheel, history, where did our story take place, what's it like, where is it on the map, what do people eat there?"   And they said, “Yeah, we don't get that.” So, she began to just really as kind of a love gift for a few girlfriends, began to write some lesson plans to go with some popular children's books.   And one thing led to another, and that was in 1994. So, this is our 29th year in publication, and I think Five in a Row has won pretty much every award that's out there, from Reader's Awards, Magazine Awards.   It's more than 100,000 families, 600,000 children have used Five in a Row in the last 29 years, and virtually no advertising.   It's almost exclusively by word of mouth, from a veteran homeschool mom pulling aside a young mom who just spent $1,300 on a massive stack of curriculum and is completely overwhelmed just three weeks into September, to say, you know what, we tried that, and we tried this, and we tried this other program, and we spent a lot of money.   And then an older mom told me about Five in a Row , let me show you how it works.   And suddenly that changes everything for so many of these young moms.   Most of the problems that new homeschoolers are facing simply are not issues at all. And the crazy part is that there are some things they ought to be worrying about, but they don't know enough yet to worry about the correct areas.   But both the obvious and the more subtle areas, God has answers.   If he's invited you to go on the homeschool journey, he has something amazing in mind for your family.   There are very few born homeschoolers, very few 15- or 16-year-old adolescent young women tell their school counselor, "You know what, I'd like to spend my life living in a two-income world on a single income and stay locked up with little people all day long without any peer support and have my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law think I'm crazy."   That's not on most young women's radars, but it begins, for most families, the same way it began for our family.   Hypothetically, honey, what would you think if, as the finger of God, the same God that said, let the waters be parted, the one that said, Lazarus, come forth, the one that said, let there be light, says, "Why don't you homeschool your kids?"   And so, you become what we often call accidental homeschoolers.   It suddenly occurs to you something that you swore you would never, ever do.   But the good news is the one who invited you is faithful. Love is a powerful motivator.   We all have stuff, and God has tried to make us deal with our stuff for years, and we've been resistant in many cases.   So, he invites us to the covenant of marriage so that we'll have a living witness to remind us of our stuff.   Honey, why do you always wait to the last minute? Honey, why do you get so upset?   And if we're still stubborn, then he invites us to have children so that we have several living witnesses.   But if we remain stiff-necked, finally he invites us to homeschool with children. And this way we have a house full of living witnesses all day long that say, "Mama, how come this and why do you do that?"   And suddenly we begin to grow in ways we never thought possible through the medium of homeschooling. It strengthens marriages.   It grows us up in Christ. It causes us to deal with our stuff.   It's amazing what it does for our children.   Laura Dugger: (32:18 - 32:44) It does seem like progressive sanctification, how the Lord has built that in within the family.   And I just appreciate how you've gone before us. And so, if someone's feeling nudged in this direction, can you paint a picture, even using Five in a Row curriculum, what kind of prep would that require for the homeschooling parent?   And what kind of schedule would their day look like?   Steve Lambert: (32:46 - 39:39) Homeschooling is essentially tutorial education, and that's always been the realm of kings and the super wealthy who hired an individual tutor for their children.   Because of homeschooling, our children can have a tutor. And tutorial education is so inherently efficient that even if you're terrible at it, your kids are going to do pretty darn well. So, when we start out, we're tempted to emulate the classroom. So, we think, well, my daughter's six.   She was going to go into first grade, so we need to start at 7:45 in the morning and we need to go until 3:45 in the afternoon with 20 minutes for lunch.   Nothing could be further from the truth. You can work with a kindergarten or first grader; 90 minutes a day is probably overkill.   So, it's something that anybody can do in their schedule, at least in those early years. And it works best when it works for you and for your children.   If your kiddo is a late-morning sleeper, trust me, they're not going to be at their best at 7:45. Don't let them sleep until 9:30. That's okay. You'll realize, for example, when you have teenagers, that they don't come to life until sometime after 11:00 p.m.   That's when they want to come into your bedroom and ask you important life questions when you're struggling to try to get to sleep.   So, first of all, you work with your children's schedule to some degree.   You work with the schedule that works for you. And you work where it works for you. If you're sick or if you're dealing with morning sickness and pregnancy, homeschool's going to happen in the bed today, kids.   Come on, gather around. We're going to read a story.   If it's a nice day, homeschooling is going to happen at the park today.   We're going to go on a nature hike. We're going to look at trees and wildlife and streams and rocks and waters.   And we're going to learn to take our paints with us.   And we're going to learn to paint the sky the way the illustrator did in our story this week that we're reading in Five in a Row.   When Jane began, she actually would take the girls to a cemetery nearby where everything was beautifully mowed and there were beautiful trees and lakes.   So, Five in a Row is built around the concept of reading a classic children's book, which Jane has selected thoughtfully and curated.   And you read it for five days in a row.   And so, on the first day, you're going to read the story aloud.   And the children just want to know how did the story ended, what happened?   A very surface, cursory reading of the story, really thinking only about the plot.   But, you know, as you go back and watch a movie the second or the third time or read a book sometimes or play the second or third time, you discover there's a whole lot more beneath the surface.   So, the first day they look at, on Mondays they do social studies.   So, they look at the setting of the story. Where did it take place?   How did people live in the 17th century? How did people live today in Japan or Australia?   How did people live along the Ohio River in the 1800s? What sort of foods did they eat? What was their language like? Let's find it on a map.   Let's learn more about it and maybe plan to cook a meal from that region or that period of history later in the week for the family.   And you can make that as complex as you want.   You can have the children make shopping lists and invitations and invite Grandma and Grandpa and help cook the meal and learn liquid and dry measure and cups and quarts and all of that and put a towel over their arm and serve the meal to Grandma and Grandpa and tell them about what they learned about Spain or Italy or France or Canada this week.   So, now you've read the story and you've learned something about what's going on in the story.   So, Tuesday, we go back and we read it a second time.   This time we look at language arts, so new vocabulary words that came up in our story this week, new creative writing techniques that maybe there was a cliffhanger that made us want to turn the page and read and see what was next or maybe the author was really great at asking questions or writing dialogue or opening sentences that create curiosity.   And so, we learned some of those techniques, and we can try them ourselves.   And even a four- or five-year-old can dictate while Mom writes down their story, and they can illustrate it later and share it with Dad.   And then on Wednesday, we look at the art. So, what did the artist teach us? What medium did they use?   Was this charcoal? Was it pen and ink? Was it watercolor or gouache? Was it oils or pastels?   How did they draw the water? Look, they drew reflections on the water. It's not just blue paper, is it?   You can see the same colors in the water that were on the shore on the opposite side.   You know what, kids? Let's get out your colored pencils or your crayons or your pastels.   Let's try drawing water more realistically the way the illustrator taught us in our story today.   And maybe learn something about famous artists who had similar styles of Degas or Renoir or Van Gogh or whoever.   Thursday, we do applied mathematics, which is not the same as math.   You're going to be doing math for 15 to 30 minutes every day in a sequential approach.   But this is about learning, you know, the difference between a square and a rectangle.   Well, they have four sides, but what's the difference? They're not all equal on the rectangle, are they?   We're going to learn, like I said, how many pints in a quart, how many quarts in a gallon.   And then on Fridays, we do science lessons. So, there's lots of opportunities in every children's book to learn more about why does the sky look blue?   Why is the grass green? Why do some things float when you put them in the water and some things sink?   And all of a sudden, you're at the kitchen sink with a stopper in it.   You fill it with water, and you've gotten a penny and a cork and a birthday candle and whatever is in the kitchen junk drawer.   And suddenly, the kids are learning about buoyancy, and they're testing things, and they're predicting their answers, learning more about the world of science and creation.   So, typical day, long story short, for a beginning homeschooler with a kindergarten-aged child, probably going to be 15, 20 minutes maybe for phonics, 15 to 20 minutes for math, which at that level is simply learning the digits and haven't even thought about adding yet.   And then another 30 open-ended minutes, 30 minutes to 90 minutes for exploring Five in a Row or whatever it is that you're reading that day.   And for some days, that might turn into two hours.   In fact, there are some days where it turns into all the way to bedtime and continues over the next two days.   If you're learning about the solar system, and suddenly that catches their attention, and they want to go to the planetarium nearby, and they want to borrow their uncle's telescope, they eat, sleep, and drink astronomy for the next two or three days.   And frankly, that's not an interruption in the curriculum. That's the answer to a prayer.   God, please help my children grow curious. Help them nurture their love of learning. Cause them to want to learn.   And sooner or later, we're going to learn about astronomy anyway, but all too often, it's while the kids are fascinated by a bug that just crawled in the room.   And so, the smart mom puts astronomy on the shelf for the moment and learns about insects. Or vice versa.   You're trying to learn about insects, and they're staring out the window looking at moons still visible in the western sky that hasn't set yet.   So, helping children learn in the proper season is another key to making it all work. It's so flexible, and it's so simple.   Laura Dugger: (39:41 - 40:33) Guess what? We are no longer an audio-only podcast.   We now have video included as well. If you want to view the conversation each week, make sure you watch our videos.   We're on YouTube, and you can access videos or find answers to any of your other questions about the podcast when you visit thesavvysauce.com.   Well, that flexibility sounds so freeing and attractive, and as you explain it, it just sounds like such a lovely educational experience.   And yet, I know a lot of homeschooling parents fear is that when their children graduate from the home, they wonder if they've done enough and how they'll perform out in, quote, the real world.   So, what was your experience as you and Jane launched your first child to college?   Steve Lambert: (40:35 - 46:24) Well, we actually sent our first one to college a week after she was 16. And to be honest, I wouldn't recommend that again for a variety of reasons.   She had a four-point-something or other GPA in college beginning at just barely 16. But being academically ready and being emotionally ready are two different things.   And so, probably, if for no other reason, we missed out on two more years of just exploring and learning together in home education.   But when she went, she was the top of her class pretty much in every subject.   Almost every study done of homeschool students by private industry and government suggests that students, on average, score about 20% higher if they were home-educated in every subject except math, where they're about the same, than their public school peers.   And it's now been more than 20 years since Harvard set out, and they kind of were one of the earliest ones to create full-time recruiters for homeschool students because universities and the marketplace are looking today for homeschoolers.   They realize that these kids are the leaders today. I saw a study of a small private university, I think in the Carolinas, if I recall, and they only had 3,000 students on campus, of which 90 were homeschooled, so 3% of the student body.   But of the 12 elected student leadership positions, student advisor to the dean, senior class president, whatever, 11 of the 12 were homeschool students.   So, even their peers recognized that these were the leaders in their community.   And we now live in a world where nobody seems to want to work. Everywhere you go, there's help-wanted signs.   And we've seen so many stories from friends and customers whose children were homeschooled who said it's a tremendous opportunity right now in the marketplace if you just show up and you're just semi-dedicated to actually doing the job.   I interviewed a guy, well, he actually came up to ask me questions after I spoke, in Chicago, as a matter of fact.   And he was the head of human resources for a large Fortune 50 company, and he said he had, I don't know, a quarter of a million employees.   And so, I asked him, I said, so this is in May, you're out recruiting, I assume.   And he says, “Yeah, I've got six recruiting teams crisscrossing American college campuses trying to recruit new employees.”   And I said, “So you're obviously looking for the highest-grade point average or highest graduating class position and competing for those students.”   He said, “No, not at all.” And I said, no? I said, “So IQ or SAT score?”   He goes, “No, none of that.” I said, “Why?” He said, “Let me tell you something.”   He said, “The average new hire costs us $70,000 to train. And this has been 15 years ago.   So, it's probably 170,000 a day. And no matter what your discipline, whether you're in sales, marketing, quality control, engineering, whatever, we're gonna spend the first year teaching you how we do it here, not how you learned it in college.   If we aren't successful in our recruiting, our company will go bankrupt. This is our largest single expense is personnel.”   And we have learned over the years that graduating class position or grade point average or SAT score IQ is totally irrelevant when it comes to determining who'll be successful in the company and who won't.   And I was a little taken aback and I said, “Well, if it's not any of those things, then you just throw darts at resumes?”   He goes, “No, no, no.” He said, “We can accurately identify these students in the most cases.” I said, “So what do you look for?” And he said, “Well, you're gonna laugh.” I said, “Maybe.” He said, “First and foremost, by far and away, the ability to get along and work well with others.”   He said, “If you can't, you're gonna get cross ways of your boss or another employee and either quit or get fired in the first six months.   The second is to be able to complete a job, see it through to completion and meet the deadline.   And number three, if you're really, really golden, the ability to work within the constraints of a budget.   Those are the things that are successful, whether you work for our company or whether you're an entrepreneur or whether you're a homemaker, whatever you do in life.”   So, with that in mind, I've spoken all over the country and encourage parents. These are things that we need to be working on. There are things that are not being worked on in the classroom.   So, look for opportunities to hand more of the education off to your students, let them plan what do I wanna study for the next two days, the next two weeks, the next two months?   Where am I gonna get the resources to discover that by the time they're in high school?   I'm gonna give you a budget to work with. There's $200, you can buy some resources, tools that you think would be useful in the process.   Where do we need to be in project management to start the process?   Where should we be by the end of week two? Where should we be by the end of the month?   These are the skills that employers are looking for and so many parents have told us that their kids have just rocketed in the marketplace.   My final question to this guy was, so are you finding bright young men and women who can do the job?   He goes, there's never been brighter, more thoroughly educated young men and women who can do the job.   He said, the problem is I can't find any who will do the job.   I can't find people who will do even four hours work for eight hours pay.   They wanna go to Starbucks, they wanna be on their cell phone, they wanna be on Facebook, they wanna be talking to their friends, taking care of their online banking, paying bills.   And so, character comes first. And if we teach our children their purpose and their place in this world, if we help them find and discover their giftedness and their aptitudes and invite them along those pathways and we increasingly turn more and more of that education over to them in the high school years where they begin to take responsibility for their own education, we're going to end up with not just capable but outstanding young men and women who can quickly take their place in our culture and rise to the very top because frankly, there's very little competition.   Laura Dugger: (46:26 - 46:36) Wow. Well, Steve, is there anything else that we haven't yet covered?   Any scriptures or stories to share that you wanna make sure we don't miss?   Steve Lambert: (46:37 - 50:16) The thing we want people to take away from all of that is not that the only way to raise your kids is to homeschool or that God doesn't approve of anything else.   The point is, listen to God and do what he said, but don't put your fingers in your ears because he often calls us to things that we really maybe didn't wanna hear and obedience is better than sacrifice.   One of my favorite stories, when our oldest daughter started to college, she went through placement counseling that summer and the placement counselor said, "You know, I don't think I've..." That was in 1991. He said, "I don't think I've ever had a student who was homeschooled."   So, that's pretty interesting. And she said, "Okay, great." And there were 30,000 students at this college and she was not only at that point, as far as we know, the only or first homeschooler, but she was also the youngest, having just turned 16 that in the middle of August.   And so, when she began, one of the prereq classes that every incoming freshman had to take was public speaking.   And she realized much to her horror that her public speaking teacher was the guy who had helped with her placement counseling earlier in the summer.   And she really didn't want anybody to know she'd been homeschooled, but she said there were returning GIs from Operation Desert Storm.   There were empty nest moms coming back to finish the degree. There were pre-med students. There were student athletes.   There were just every kind of student in that class because everybody had to take public speaking.   And he said, the very first day, the teacher said, "I'd like for everybody to give a six-minute speech on Monday. That's the best way to do this is just to jump in on whether or not you think we ought to be involved in nation building. Except for you, Ms. Lambert, and I'd like for you to give six-minute speech on what it was like to be homeschooled."   And she slunk down below her desk and tried to disappear into the floor.   And she said, "Dad, what am I gonna do?" I said, "Well, just get up and tell them."   So, she did. And she said, you know, as far as I can tell over the course of that semester, she said every single person in that class, whether they were 18 or 58, found me somewhere on the campus in the quadrangle at the library, the cafeteria, in the parking lot, and said in one way or another, their own words, "You're so lucky your parents cared enough about you to be involved in your education. I'm jealous. I'm envious. I wish my parents had been."   She said, but the one that killed me was a girl who was 18, had just graduated from a prestigious high school the previous May.   And she began to tell her story. And she said, "When I began high school four years ago, my goal was to become valedictorian of my graduating class. I've never been at a sleepover. I've never been to a, you know, skating party or, you know, movies. All I've done is study for four years. And she said, I was in AP classes all the way through and my GPA was like 4.7887. And there was this guy and his was 4.78779. And he and I competed every year in every class. And it came down to the final test and the final class and the final semester. And I beat him by two points."   And so, last May, she said, my dream came true.   And I stood on the football field and I gave the commencement address, the valedictorian address to 4,000 of my peers, their parents, civic leaders, laity, community leaders of faith. And both of my parents were too busy to attend.   She said, "I wish my parents cared and had been as involved in my education as yours were. You're very lucky."   And she said, "Dad, it just killed me to hear her story."   And I said, "I don't have any answers, honey, but our joy was raising you girls and seeing you become the people that God intended you to become."   Laura Dugger: (50:18 - 50:43) Wow, Steve, that is so powerful.   And what an incredible charge to leave each of us with to go and do likewise.   And as we wind down our time together, you are already familiar that we are called The Savvy Sauce because savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge.   And so, as my final question for you today, what is your Savvy Sauce?   Steve Lambert: (50:45 - 51:59) Read aloud, read often, read to your spouse, read to your kids.   Jane and I continue, we've been together now 57 years, and we still read aloud to one another every single day.   I read aloud to my kids still on occasion, my grandkids still, my daughters are in their 40s.   My grandkids, but that was the joy. And that's the thing that when all else fails, when your relationship is struggling, when your homeschool day is falling flat on its face, get a great book and snuggle together with your kids and read out loud.    It's in that process that their imaginations are birthed, their angst is quieted, and disagreements between spouses can suddenly be pushed aside because suddenly you're facing sorrow and you have a sword in your hand or you're coming down the Mississippi River on a riverboat or whatever it is that you, it unlocks doors that sometimes we didn't even know were locked.   So, that's the Savvy Sauce that's worked for us. Read aloud, read often, and don't let a day go by that you don't read to your children, even when your kids are 18. And if you have little ones, read to the little ones and I guarantee you the high schoolers will come around and listen to every day.   Laura Dugger: (52:00 - 52:23) I love that so much. That is wonderful.   And I have very much appreciated your insights and wisdom that you shared with us today.   So, thank you for the legacy that you and Jane have been building for years.   Thank you for being a faithful and intentional father and husband.   And thank you so much, Steve, for being my guest.   Steve Lambert: (52:24 - 52:29) Laura, it's been my pleasure. I've appreciated the opportunity. Thank you for what you do.   God bless you.   Laura Dugger: (52:29 - 55:45) Thank you. One more thing before you go. Have you heard the term gospel before?   It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you.   But it starts with the bad news.   Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves.   This means there is absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own.   So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death, and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved.   We need a Savior. But God loved us so much, he made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute.   This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him. That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life we could never live and died in our place for our sin.   This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus.   We can be covered and justified through the work Jesus finished if we choose to receive what He has done for us.   Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”    So, would you pray with me now?   Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus to take our place.   I pray someone today right now is touched and chooses to turn their life over to you.   Will you clearly guide them and help them take their next step in faith to declare you as Lord of their life?   We trust you to work and change lives now for eternity. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.   If you prayed that prayer, you are declaring him for me, so me for him.   You get the opportunity to live your life for him.   And at this podcast, we're called The Savvy Sauce for a reason.   We want to give you practical tools to implement the knowledge you have learned. So, you ready to get started?   First, tell someone. Say it out loud. Get a Bible.   The first day I made this decision, my parents took me to Barnes & Noble and let me choose my own Bible.   I selected the Quest NIV Bible, and I love it. You can start by reading the book of John.   Also, get connected locally, which just means tell someone who's a part of a church in your community that you made a decision to follow Christ.   I'm assuming they will be thrilled to talk with you about further steps, such as going to church and getting connected to other believers to encourage you.   We want to celebrate with you too, so feel free to leave a comment for us here if you did make a decision to follow Christ.   We also have show notes included where you can read scripture that describes this process. And finally, be encouraged.   Luke 15:10 says, “In the same way I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   The heavens are praising with you for your decision today.   And if you've already received this good news, I pray you have someone to share it with.   You are loved and I look forward to meeting you here next time.

This prayer appeals to God in all three persons of the Blessed Trinity, as well as to our Blessed Mother, for their assistance in making a good confession. The transcription for this Podcast can be found at https://www.ourcatholicprayers.com/prayer-for-heavenly-aid.html An Additional Link Mentioned In This Podcast: An Examination of Conscience  

 Heavenly Father, on this day we rejoice in the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the pure and holy Mother of your Son. Through her "yes," the world received its Saviour, and your promise of salvation was fulfilled. Grant that we, who celebrate her nativity, may grow in faith, hope, and love, and, by her prayers, come closer to the heart of Christ your Son. May her life inspire us to trust in your plan and to serve you with joyful hearts. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

What does a healthy private life look like for a disciple of Jesus? In this message from 1 Peter 3, we discover God's design for relationships—between husbands and wives, friends, and our Heavenly Father. Learn how to honor, forgive, and find peace as you walk with Christ.

While Jesus certainly taught us all about God's love, mercy, and grace, some of the toughest words He spoke were about forgiveness … and the lack of forgiveness.Matthew 6:12-15 NIV“And forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don't let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.”“If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Jesus included forgiveness in a very short example of how to talk to God, in what came to be known as The Lord's Prayer. But then immediately following the prayer, He continued His teaching on forgiveness. It is important that we notice in verse 12 that Jesus says “Forgive us as we forgive.” Connecting that phrase to verses 14 and 15 communicates that God expects us to keep our slate clean and our list empty of what we hold against others. So He can then do the same for us. This does not mean that God is unable to forgive, but because He is God, He has a divine order for everything that He knows is always the best thing for us.Staying free of bitterness and unforgiveness, along with being forgiven for our offenses, is the healthiest path for us all.Do you have an “I will never forgive that person” list? An “I can never forgive that person” list? Sometimes it is only through God's strength that we are able to forgive.Think of that person as I personalize Jesus' words from this passage again:“And forgive me of my sins, as I have forgiven those who sin against me. And don't let me yield to temptation, but rescue me from the evil one. “If I forgive those who sin against me, my heavenly Father will forgive me. But if I refuse to forgive others, my Father will not forgive my sins.” (Matthew 6:12-15 NIV)We need to avoid the temptation to view Jesus's words as harsh, but rather as what it takes for us to be our best and healthiest in the sight of God. Again, often on our strength alone it can feel impossible to take this very important step.Ask your Father for the strength to forgive as you have been forgiven.Let's pray together: “Heavenly Father, I want to lay my list of people I can't, or struggle to, forgive before You right now. I confess I battle with forgiving them. Father, I don't want anything to come between my relationship with You, so please give me the strength and obedience to follow Your words—to release them and forgive them for good—just as You have forgiven me for my offenses and sins against You and others. As above, so below.”

Pastor Daniel continues to teach that knowing and loving the gospel will help you when you pray to your Heavenly Father.

Sermon Notes:o Dallas Willard – Joy is a deep and pervasive sense of well-being, of knowing and trusting that God cares for us and is working for our good.o Are we a joyful church?o A church of joy focuses not on us, but on Jesus.o My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus' blood and righteousness.o Acts 2:22a – Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you…o Acts 2:22b – … accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.o Acts 2:23 – This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge, and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.o Acts 2:24 – But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.o Jesus was on a mission from God.o Jesus proved he was from God by his miracles and mighty works.o Jesus died for our sins on the cross because it was God's plan.o Jesus was resurrected by God to show death was defeated.o Being a church of joy means this is Jesus' church, not ours.o To help as many people as possible take their next step toward Jesus.o Being church of joy means we are participating in God's plan.o You are to be my witnesses…o Are you participating in God's plan?o Being a church of joy means we are forgiven people.o Being a church of joy means we are Easter People!o Acts 2:37-39 - 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”o 38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”o Heavenly Father, I confess I have failed at life. Please forgive me. I give you control of my life and from now on I will follow Jesus.o Lake Baptism, Sunday, September 14, 5 pm.o Thy will be done, thy kingdom come.LIFE Group Discussion QuestionsOpener: On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 is high) what score would give to our church being a church of joy? Please share your reasons.Go Deeper1. Read Acts 2:22-24.a. In Peter's list of core beliefs, what do you see as the core beliefs required to be a follower of Jesus?b. In your opinion, what do modern day Christians add to the list? What is the impact of adding something to Peter's list?c. Imagine being in the crowd that day. What might be the biggest stumbling block to you as you pondered following Jesus?2. Read Acts 2:37-39a. Notice the reaction of the crowd. What do you think it means that they were cut to the heart?b. To repent is to go the other direction. Have you known someone who professed Jesus and was baptized, but showed no life change? What do you think Jesus would say about their relationship to him?c. Baptism was well known in Jesus time. Converts to Judaism were baptized. Why do you think Jesus told his followers to be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?3. Name three things your group can do that will help our church be a church of joy.

Children tend to become like their parents. We naturally imitate their habits and tendencies. As God's children, we should imitate our Heavenly Father. Ephesians 5:1-7 gives this command.

Be inspired to dive into the scriptures and get a revelation of the supernatural access you have to the promises of God, so you can live a life full of blessings and protection from your Heavenly Father who loves you.

Our God wastes NOTHING! Every struggle and every unexpected storm is an opportunity to grow our faith, increase our hope, and find purpose in seasons of waiting. Release control, avoid comparison, and trust the One who holds your future! In this conversation, Laurie Crouch, Dr. Anita Phillips, Sheila Walsh, Dr. DeeDee Freeman, and Blynda Lane discuss how to become spiritually healthy.   If you enjoyed this episode, we encourage you to go back and listen to the previous conversations in this series: 1. Healing Begins with the Heart 2. Emotional & Physical Healing 3. Caring for Your Mind ------ If you are feeling weary today, run to your Heavenly Father! When we don't know what to pray, the Psalms give words to our emotions. Read 15 Psalms to Heal Your Heart. ------- Do you want more Better Together? We have 1000+ conversations available! Start watching now for free on the TBN+ app!   --------  If you need prayer, join our community on Instagram // Facebook // YouTube // TikTok  and let us know how we can pray for you! ---------  Better Together is TBN's first daily original program made by women for women! We discuss faith, family, friends, and so much more—no topic is off-limits. Find out what happens when real friends get together for real conversations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When the Heavenly Father reveals Himself to you, it is an invitation to imitate Him as a dearly loved child. What you hear about the church in this message, is an invitation to imitate the Father in the way He values the Church!www.realchurch.us

Listen to a powerful message of hope from Ps Dan Ackermann (LIFE East Campus Pastor) as he's joined by a few guests to celebrate Father's Day. Ps Dan and the panel unpack a few Psalms and how they can help us truly know our Heavenly Father better._To find out more about LIFE, visit us at lifenz.org

Does God really love me?Who are the lost around me? How can I help?FoundIs my heart aligned with God's?Who is my ONE?Lost Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your son Jesus to die on the cross for my sin. I believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I ask you to forgive me for all of my sin and for playing god in my own life! You alone are God! I surrender my life to you. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit and help me live my life for you, to the best of my ability. In Jesus name, Amen. 

Jesus teaches in Matthew 6:19-34 about the critical choice between earthly and heavenly treasures. Earthly possessions are temporary and vulnerable, while heavenly treasures remain secure eternally. Our hearts naturally follow what we value most, revealing our true priorities. Jesus uses the metaphor of the eye to illustrate spiritual vision and warns that we cannot serve both God and money. He encourages us to trust our Heavenly Father's provision rather than worrying, pointing to nature as evidence of God's care. The solution is simple yet profound: seek first God's kingdom, and everything else will fall into place.

Group Guide Use this guide to help your group discussion as you meet this week. TranscriptGood morning. My name is Spencer. I am one of the pastors here. So we, as I said last week, we are taking a break. We just finished up First Samuel and we are not going to jump straight into Second Samuel. We're going to do that in the new year. We're going to do a series called re member series called Remember. We'll do that through the fall and then we'll do give series and we'll come back to Second Samuel. We're excited about this series. This is an opportunity for us to revisit and remember what it means to be a member of this church. See how clever we are with titles, you guys. There you go. One clap. It's an opportunity for us to revisit what it means to be a member of this church. So we're going to over the next few months walk through our membership commitments and revisit the things that bind us together as beliefs and practices. And then if you are a member of this church, we'll have the opportunity this fall to actually recommit to membership. We're excited about that and we're going to have more information about that at our upcoming family meeting. So make sure that you are there if you're a committed member of our church, to be at family meeting. But we're thankful that we get to walk through this over the next couple months. These 14 different membership commitments that we have before we jump into those commitments today, I want to look at the why and the what of membership. We need to look at the why and the what of membership before we jump into what we actually commit to as a church. Because some folks will pose the question, why membership in the first place? Why do you have membership? Why belong to a church? Some people ask, is church membership even biblical? Like, where do you get this idea? So we're going to examine that idea while also being clear about what it means to be a member of this church. Like what is our membership commitment all about? And there's some language that we use that is going to sound very familiar, that if you ask what does it mean to be a member of of Mill City Church of Cayce, There's a phrase that will show up as we walk through this today. I know it's going to blow your mind like you've never heard it before. But we are a gospel centered community on mission. It's the language we use over and over again. I'm pretty sure it's on the wall somewhere in the lobby. But there's a reason we are that and there is a Reason why that really defines who we are as a church. And we're going to see that as we walk through why membership, but also what it means to be a member of this church. So I want to pray for us and then we will walk through this together.Heavenly Father, I pray that you might help us have ears to hear this morning. I pray that you might help us see why it is good to belong, why it is good to commit to following you, to delighting in you, to loving one another, to being obedient, to take the gospel to our city. God, I pray you'd help us be present and we'd be not just hearers of the Word, but we would be doers of the Word. As we trust you, we ask this in Jesus name. Amen.All right, so why do we practice church membership? Someone will ask, where in the Bible do you find the command to be a member of a local church? Now, this may come as a shock to some of you, but you're not going to find any one verse in the Bible that commands for you to be a part of a church through church membership. There's no Third Corinthians that shows up and says, and be a member of a local church and submit to the elders of that local church. There's not any one verse that really makes this crystal clear, which is if there was, it might make the conversation about membership a little bit easier over the years as we've had it. But what you will see is as you look through the Scriptures, you'll see that God is doing something in setting up his church. And that's what I want to do. For the first part in answering why membership? I want to do what's I want to do a biblical theology of church membership, which is going from the Old Testament to the New Testament to see how God is developing this people that is going to belong to him, with him at the center to declare His Excellencies to a lost world. So that's what I want to do, starting off in the Old Testament, in the book of Genesis. So God chooses in the Book of Genesis, Abraham that he's going to form a people through. He promises Abraham he's going to have a great nation that's made through him. And in this selection of Abraham, we see that God is going to have a unique, special relationship with him and his people, unlike the rest of humanity. And there's this promise of this great nation, this great people that he's going to bless the nations through. And then when you get to the next Book of The Bible, the second book, the book of Exodus. You see that God takes his descendants, the twelve tribes of Israel who have been slaves in Egypt. He brings them out of Egypt. And when they're wandering in the wilderness in Exodus 19, you see really the formation and the formal covenant relationship that God establishes with his people. And in Exodus 19 he tells his people in verse 5,> Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.These are the words he shall speak to the people of Israel. Then he tells them that you are my treasured possession. And as this is going to play out, he's going to take this people, his treasured possession to the promised land. He's going to set himself up in the center of his people to be a God centered people that are uniquely his, unlike any other aspect of creation, unlike any other people. And that this people is going to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. This people was meant to be separate from the nations that look different, that proclaim the excellencies of God as a light to the surrounding nations. And then this is Exodus 19, right before Moses goes up to Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments. When he gets the Ten Commandments, you see the first four commandments and the Ten Commandments are God centered commandments. This is how to have right relationship with God and worshiping God alone. And then the next six are how to live in good community with one another, how to love one another, how to trust one another, don't lie, don't murder, don't steal. And then the rest of the Old Testament law is really expounding upon those 10 Commandments. It's helping them see in their context, in their time, this is what it means to be a people who has God at the center, who loves one another fiercely in a community that takes care of one another, that looks separate from the nations, that declares how good our God is. And when you read the rest of the Old Testament, you see a people that most of the time falls on their face in trying to live that out, that over and over again. They don't put God at the center, they worship other gods, they don't love each other, they don't serve each other, they take advantage of one another. And instead of looking separate than the nations in order to show how good their God is, they look just like the nations. And that is the reason that they need a Savior and there's this hope from the prophets proclaiming this Savior is going to come. And then Jesus comes.Flip to the New Testament. When Jesus comes, he begins to develop this with new and better language. You see, if you just take the Gospel of Matthew, just start there. When you start reading the Gospel of Matthew, you're going to see what God is doing. In Matthew chapter 4, Jesus begins His ministry by preaching the gospel, proclaiming the gospel of his kingdom that is coming, and declaring the good news. And then he also chooses a people. He chooses the 12 disciples, these disciples whom he's going to build his church through. He begins teaching them. You keep flipping. Go to Matthew chapter five through Matthew chapter seven. You read the Sermon on the Mount. This is a retelling of the law and new and really better language, showing the heart of God all along for his people. What it looks like to put God at the center, what it looks like to take sin seriously, to live in community. We see some of this and more teaching, more of his ministry. When you get to Matthew chapter 11, you see that he commissions out his disciples. He puts them on a mission trip to begin to declare the good news of the Gospel to the people in the surrounding areas. You keep reading the Gospel of Matthew, you see more teaching, you see more of his work and his ministry. And then you get to Matthew chapter 18. And then Jesus begins to use a word to describe what this people is going to be, that he's making this new covenant people, and that is the church. The Greek word for that is ekklesia. It means church or assembly. And it shows up in Matthew 18. And Jesus begins to describe what this church is going to look like. It's going to be a people who take sin seriously, who hold each other accountable, who practice radical forgiveness. That is unlike the rest of the world. Jesus continues to teach. He continues to form his people. He continues to disciple his disciples. And then it is time for him to do the work that no one can do. He does the work of salvation. He takes his perfect record of righteousness with him to the cross. He dies on the cross for our sins because we were unable to to obey the law. He dies on the cross, taking judgment upon himself. He conquers death at the resurrection, removing the power of death over his people. And then he looks at his disciples at the end of Matthew and he tells them,> Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.He tells them, you're going to take everything that you've learned from me over the last three years. This message of the gospel that I came to redeem you and save you. This message of what it looks like to be a people that are committed to having God at the center and loving one another. Well, you're going to take that to the nations where they're going to hear the gospel and believe and you can read Mark and Luke and John and you're going to see this story over and over again. Then you get the book of Acts where Jesus ascends to the right hand of God the Father being king over all creation. And then the Holy Spirit descends upon his people and the church begins in Acts 2. You read that Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit stands up, preaches the first sermon at Pentecost and 3,000 people, people place plus people place their faith in Jesus and are baptized. And then we see some of the very first acts of this church and responding to Christ in faith and baptism. It says in verse 42. We'll have more time to study this exact passage in community group this week. I just want to hit some of the highlights to help us see what God is doing here. In verse 42 he says,> And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.That's the teachings of Christ. They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching. They were a gospel centered people. And it continues into the fellowship and the breaking of bread and prayers. You go to verse 44.> And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.That they were a people that believed the gospel, devoted themselves to that teaching, but they devoted themselves to one another. They fellowshiped together, they broke bread together, they took care of each other's needs. They saw their brothers and sisters in Christ as more important than money and material things. And they're selling their stuff so that they can take care of one another. And then it goes in verse 47 and finishes.> And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.That this message continues to be introduced to people who hear and believe and are brought into the church to continue to be a gospel centered community on mission to take the gospel to the world that desperately needed it. The church in Jerusalem continues to expand as you follow the story. Keep flipping through Acts. All of a sudden God has a plan to see scatter his people and involves the death of one of his servants, Stephen. He ordains the death of Stephen who's proclaiming the Good news of Jesus Christ and he's murdered for it. And in Acts chapter eight, after he's martyred, it says, and Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem. And they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. And now we see that the plan is spreading, that it's not just a church in Jerusalem now, it's in Judea and it's in Samaria. And the church is going global. One of the ways this has been described is that the church globally is the big sea church in creeds. That's called the Catholic Church. It's not referring to the Catholic denomination, but the Catholic meaning universal. That there's this global, universal church bound together by Christ. But it's not just in Jerusalem, it's in Judea, it's in Samaria. It's scattered in communities across the world in local churches. That's usually called the little C church. But there are little C churches who are forming together with Christ at the center, seeking to be what God has called them. Now the church is spreading past Jerusalem. And then that man who was involved in the killing of Stephen Saul in Acts chapter nine is on his way to persecute more Christians. And then Jesus blinds him, converts him. And then we know him mostly as Paul. And then Paul is set apart to take this even further. And he plants churches all over Asia Minor, all over Europe. And the church begins to spread and expand. As you continue to read the Book of Acts, you see the gospel spreading all over that region. But as these churches are getting established and they're seeking to be a gospel centered people that are taking the gospel to the nations as they're seeking to be this, they start to run into problems. They start to run into different things, different sins, different struggles. There's a bunch of people who the thing that the. The central binding idea that holds them together is Christ. But they're very, very different. Different ethnicities, different cultures, different classes. And as you continue to read the rest of the New Testament, you see that God had a plan for this, that he starts to write letters, inspired scripture through servants like Paul to these churches to help them see what it means to be a gospel centered people. How to fight for what is good, how to repent of sin, how to live in community, how to still have some missional hustle to take the gospel to the nations. But when you read the beginnings of these letters, you see very clearly that these are individual churches. I'll run through a Bunch of them. Really quickly. The letter to the Corinthians, in First Corinthians, Chapter one, it says, to the church of God that is in Corinth, that is that church in that city with their unique issues. This is a letter to that church. Not all the churches, though all the churches, will eventually benefit from this, helping us see now it's not just one global church. There's individual churches where these people belong to one another and have their own leaders and their own issues they're facing. It continues to the churches of Galatia, that's a whole region of different churches that Paul planted in his first missionary journey. To the saints who are in Ephesus, that's the book of Ephesians. To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, that's the book of Philippians. To the church of Thessalonians and God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, that's the church in Thessalonica. You start to see that there is one global church made up of individuals, communities of Christians who are seeking to be centered in Christ, loving one another fiercely and taking the Gospel to their friends and their neighbors. And you follow that thread all the way through the letters and you'll get to the end. The Book of Revelation, which we did last year. And as we saw the Book of Revelation, it's not just apocalyptic literature. It's not just proclaiming what's going to happen. It is also a letter written to seven churches. Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, and as we saw last year, all churches with different problems, with different sins, some needing encouragement, all of them mostly needing a smack across the face from Jesus. But those are all individual churches where those people belong to Christ and. And one another seeking to be obedient in following him and taking the Gospel to those who needed it. So that's Genesis to Revelation. While you're not going to find one specific verse that makes this so clear, what you can see from start to finish is that God had a plan to form a people. And that plan was to be localized in churches where there were people that were so deeply committed to following Christ and having a zeal and a desire to worship and delight in him over all things, to be a people, a community that so deeply loved one another and cared for one another, that looked radically different than the rest of the world. So much so that historians at the time were looking at these Christians and saying there's something different about them. And to be a people who are not so self focused that they were going to use their energy and their effort and their time and their money and their lives lives to proclaim the good news to those who didn't know. That is God's plan for redemption. One global church working through individual local churches all around the world. That is God's plan for the church. So when someone says I don't see membership in the Bible, I just want to say it's, you got to read the whole story. You need to see what God is doing. You need to see God's plan for redemption that is through the local church.I was talking to a pastor a few weeks back and he was telling me a story about a guy who had been coming to their church and he said, did this guy come? And he was kind of coming for weeks and they started to introduce the idea, maybe you should think about committing here. And he said, oh no, I don't believe membership is biblical. He's like, I'm a part of the big C church, we're all a part of the same church, but I'm not going to commit to membership here. And he was kind of taken aback and he engaged with the conversation. He said, okay, take what you're saying, so you're a member of the big sea, the, the big church universal. He said, yeah. He said, okay, well am I like a pastor in this big old church in the world? And he said, yeah. He said okay, so does it make me like your pastor? He said, yeah. He said, alright, let me share with you Hebrews chapter 13. He said,> Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.He said, do you believe that's true? He said, yeah. He said, okay, so if I'm your pastor and you're gonna submit to me, you should go through the membership process at our church. He just laid it out for him and the guy said no and he left and he never came back. And I thought that was quite the clever way to be able to explain and poke holes in the guy's argument. But that passage is incredibly helpful. You read the New Testament letters and you see that God has structured for these local communities that he has pastors, elders that are overseeing the church. So when I look at that passage, obey your leaders and submit to them. It's helpful for me when I'm talking to people about membership. It's like, I belong to this church, I'M one of the pastors of this church. I belong to them, they belong to me. My people aren't down the road. They're the brothers and sisters. They're not across town, they're not across the world. I don't pastor them, I don't oversee their souls. I don't answer for their souls. No, it's this people. And you see that God has a plan and even the oversight of his church. And I think this is important, especially in Southern culture. And here's why. In Southern culture, pretty much still everyone, if you ask them, are you a Christian? They're gonna say, yeah. The overwhelming majority of people in the south are still gonna say, yeah, I'm a Christian. And if you begin to press into that, a lot of times it's, well, I'm Methodist or I'm Presbyterian or Episcopalian, or I'm Baptist or I'm Catholic. And it's like, what does that mean? I was just born Christian, I was born a Methodist. And as you look at the scriptures, you're not born a Christian. And if you continue to press into this, what you also see is there are a lot of people that claim the name of Christ that don't really belong anywhere. They don't commit to any people, don't commit to the Lord locally anywhere. They're just free floating in a way that is so foreign to the scriptures. And then what you'll also see is you'll see people that go, yeah, I mean, I don't really, not really. I don't really, I'm not a member anywhere. I, I like this church for the worship. I like this church for the teaching. I like this church for their Bible studies, like this church for their small groups. I like this church for their outreach. And I kind of just, you know, take everywhere like it's a buffet. And it's like, man, to make the church of Jesus Christ for your own benefit is so foreign to what the scriptures teach about the church that is not the church that Jesus bled and died for. You should be committed to God and his people somewhere. And my hope is that as you look at the grand story, you'll see, yes, you should belong. You should be a member of a church somewhere. Christians are not designed to be outside of the church or just not. And over the next couple months, I hope we continue to see that over and over again as we walk through this.Now that's the why of why we should belong to a church. Now I just want to, as we end look at the what, what does it mean to belong to this church? And it's gonna sound like a broken record, but it's a good one. It's a record we spend every Sunday. It's what Chet Phillips calls the bee's knees of belonging, which I don't know why he calls it that, but it's really important to us. And that is being a gospel centered community on mission. And that's what you're going to see over the next two months. Walking through this, you're going to see 14 different commitments that highlight that. So let's start with that first part. What does it mean to be gospel centered? It means that we are a church that is bound together by. By one shared story. And that story is the message of the gospel. We are bound together by this one shared story in a way that not just defines us at the beginning in belief, but defines us in belief and practice the rest of our lives. If you look at the American story, okay, if you look at the American story at the beginning, you see that it's a group of people that are anti tyranny. Okay? No taxation without representation. No king's going to tell us what to do. You'll see that it's a people that love freedom, freedom of expression, freedom of worship, freedom of speech. Don't step on my freedoms. You'll see that it's a people that have some hustle, some dogged determination to exist. That's how America began. But that's also the story that permeates through its people throughout time, that even today, Americans don't like kings. Don't tell me what I can and cannot do. We like freedom and there's still some dogged determination to exist. That's the American spirit and it still flows through its people. And we as Christians have a much better story. We as Christians have a much better story. That's not just our origin story, but it permeates through us in our lives. It is the story of Jesus Christ. It is the story of a God who looked on humanity, that rejected him, that spit upon his goodwill, that decided that they wanted to worship what they wanted to worship and find what they thought fulfilling and rejected him over and over again. And God and His mercy does not give us judgment. He sends His Son that Christ comes and he dies on the cross for sinners. And he conquers death at the resurrection. And he gives us grace that we don't deserve to be in relationship with Him. And he forms us more into his image through his work, through his will and desire and good pleasure and that story continues to work within his people. It is the story that saves us, but it's the story that sustains us. In the same way that as foreigners come to America and they become American citizens and in a lot of ways embody the American spirit in beautiful ways, they start loving freedom. They start. They have this dogged determination within them. We do not belong to this world as Christians. Scriptures say that we have. Our citizenship is in heaven. From we have with a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, that we are part of the world that is to come. And as citizens of that kingdom here on this earth, as sojourners and strangers and foreigners, that we embody what it means to belong to him more than anything else. So what we'll see over the next coming weeks as we walk through these commitments, we'll see what it means to be a gospel centered people bound together by that story. But we will also see what it means to be a community. What it means to be a gospel centered community. One of the metaphors that we see in the New Testament for the church, for the this community is the body. So Romans 12, we'll talk about one body, many members. So one body, different body parts, different members of the body in a way that each person is doing their gift to be able to serve one another well. And man, when you see that actually in practice, when you experience what it means to belong to the church of Jesus Christ and have different members of the body who, who love and serve you, it is a glorious story. I mean, if you ever see someone who loses their job, which is a massive loss, and they're crushed, and then someone in their group finds out, and all of a sudden their whole group is messaging them saying, hey, we love you, like we're praying for you. You need to know that your identity is not in the work that you do. Your identity is in the God who loves you, who sustains you. God's going to provide for you. He's going to take care of you, we're going to take care of you. But you need to remember the gospel. And then all of a sudden, they're behind the scenes organizing things. By the time he gets home, there's already been a meal delivered and there's meals to be delivered the next few days. All of a sudden someone else in the church hears about this and they put $1,000 in an envelope and drop it on the doorstep. And all of a sudden he's being provided for, his family's being loved. And then more people in the church find out all of A sudden they ask, can we be praying about this? That you would find a new job that ends up in our prayer message that goes out to our members. Now the whole church is praying and then someone else in the church hears about that and says, wait a second, I know what he does for a living. I got a friend who's hiring for that position right now. They reach out and say, hey, hey, can you talk to this, Talk to my friend. He's hiring. And then within a week, he's already got a job lined up. When you see the church respond like that over and over and over and over again, it makes me so thankful for the church of Jesus Christ and how his church responds over and over again. We've seen this over and over again in our church and it's wonderful. And I wish in some ways more of those stories were told. I know why we don't. Because we don't let the left hand know what the right is doing. I get that. But the stories that go viral are the church hurt stories. And yes, those stories exist. They're real stories with real pain. I'm not denying the existence of them. But boy, oh boy, the amount of church help stories where people rally around one another, it's like 100 to 1 to 1 compared to that. The church is a wonderful people to belong to, to see them in action over and over and over again because they're centered in Christ in a way that helps us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, see something beyond our own interest. And when you see it in action, it's beautiful. It's a family. And that's the language of the New Testament. Often when it talks about the church and is family. When you start learning New Testament Greek, one of the first, you start with the vocabulary words that are the most, most used in the New Testament. And one of the first words you learn in Greek is adelphoi, it's the word for brothers and sisters. Because it shows up over and over and over again in the scriptures to talk about God's people, that we are a family, that we are brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul, when he's making converts, talks about his converts like spiritual children. That we are a family, that we love one another, that we belong to one another. And when you study the Book of Acts, you see this. The church functions like a family. I was trying to explain this to someone recently. I was trying to explain this concept and I was just saying, listen, I'm close with my earthly family. I'm close with my parents, my brothers, and my sisters, like we are, we're close, but boy, oh boy, there's some eternal depth that I have with brothers and sisters in this church that when crap hits the fan in my life, the first few messages are not to family. And that's not to lower my earthly family. I'm real close with them. It's to elevate what the importance of church family is here. And when it hits the fan, I'm messaging people in this church and I got people in this church who rally around in wonderful ways. To belong to a family that fiercely loves God and one another is beautiful, it's compelling, it's wonderful. It is so good to belong to the Church of Jesus Christ. And as you walk through the membership commitment with us over the next couple of months, you're going to see this. You're going to see how we fight for this, how this is so unbelievably important to us. We want to be a gospel centered people. We want to be a community that's like a family, but we also want to take this thing that we hold dear to those who don't believe. We're a gospel centered community on mission. And that's what we're also going to see in our membership commitment. We do not exist to be a holy huddle. We do not exist to be inwardly focused. We exist to take this wonderful news that brought us from death to life, to people, to friends, to neighbors, to co workers so that they might taste and see that the Lord is good and be brought into the family of God. We care deeply about this.Now, one of the downsides to you using the word membership is because sometimes the word membership in our culture has a consumeristic bent. I mean, you could be a member of Costco. It's a pretty low commitment. You pay, what is it, 80 bucks a year? You know, and then you get to go and buy all sorts of bulk goods that certainly will, certainly some of it will spoil in your cabinets because it's just hard to use up all that stuff before it goes bad. Maybe your family's better than ours. We couldn't do it. Or Walmart. Plus, that's not important. There's a consumeristic nature sometimes to the word membership that makes it about self, that makes it about our interest. And I still think the word membership is worth fighting for. I still think it's worth reclaiming from our culture to help us see that it is not about self, that membership is about something bigger than us. It's about a people who leverage their time and their Talents and their energy and their money and their efforts and their lives so that others who do not know Christ, others who are sprinting towards an eternity apart from God under his wrath, who desperately need to know the love of a savior who bled and died for them, that it's worth our energy and our hustle and our grit to take that. To those who don't believe. It's not a country club. It's more like a military outpost. The membership we have here, we don't want to be a country club. Country club is low commitment. You pay your fee, you get to go play golf, get to enjoy the pool, but you don't keep the greens and you don't scrub the pool. We don't want to be that. We want to be more like a military outpost. Our country has military outposts all over the world. And the members of the US Military who are at those outposts, they are there to serve the interest of America. They. They're there to serve the interests of their commander in chief. They are there bound together, laser focused, whether it's promoting the values of America in that area of the world or at times, whether it's fighting a war, but they are laser focused, committed to the mission of America. And we have something so much better than that. We are citizens of a kingdom that is not of this world. And we serve a king who. Who reigns for eternity. And we get to serve him in a land that we do not belong to, that is foreign to us. And we get to serve his interests taking the gospel to people who do not know him, making enemies, friends, making the lost found, making the dead alive in Christ. That's what we want to be. The church is supposed to be. And I'll be honest, we've had folks in the past who came to our church looking for a country club and they just didn't stick. And we're not perfect. We got our flaws. You've been here long enough, you go learn them. But that's not what we want to be. But we've also had folks who've been there and done some of the Southern consumeristic Christianity. And they see the things that we're fighting for and they love it and they jump on and they see I do. I want to be a people that loves one another fiercely, that chases after Jesus together. That is taking the gospel to those who don't believe. I want to be a part of that. And they jump in and we hustle and we fight to be the church of the New Testament and the scriptures that we see that hustled and fought and was missional and had some dog in it. Like we want to be that type of church to missionaries, be everyday missionaries here in this city, in Columbia. So we want to be. And as we walk through the membership commitment over the next few months, this is something that is going to show up. And at times it's hard. I'm not going to lie. At times living out the ideals and the practices and the beliefs of our commitments is difficult. And what's helpful for my soul, maybe it'll be helpful for you, is I like to take the 10,000 year perspective when I think about all this stuff. 10,000 years from now, are you going to regret when you look back at this life not picking up more hobbies, not being the best pickleball player in the world, not using all your money to level up to the next part of society, to the next class, Are you going to regret not fulfilling the American dream and all of its trappings? Or are you going to be so insanely thankful that the work of the Spirit went to work in your heart in a way that helped you leverage your time and your energy and your heart's desire to be a people so deeply centered on the gospel, so deeply, fiercely loving one another and so outwardly focused that you took the gospel to some of your co workers who currently right now are walking as enemies of the cross of Christ because you love them, because you served them, because you stood in the way between them and hell and said Jesus is better than everything else. And they placed their faith in Jesus and they got baptized and they joined a group and they kept fighting to believe all the way to 10,000 years from now. They are standing in the presence of their Savior, worshiping him with you because you gave your life away to something that matters. That is what our commitment is all about. And that's what we're gonna look at the next couple of months. My hope is that for the members of this church, you'd be so deeply excited that you be so thankful for the work of Christ in our lives that we get to do this together. But if you're not new and you're checking us out, I hope you stick around. I hope my yelling didn't run you off. It's just, I'm just excited, you guys.

Have you ever struggled to be quick to listen and slow to speak? In this devotional, Megan J. Conner reflects on James 1:19 and how challenging it can be to practice patience, humility, and gentleness in our everyday interactions. From stressful situations to family conversations, James reminds us that our reactions reflect Christ’s character to those around us. God calls us to represent His nature by choosing compassion over anger and listening over rushing to respond. ✨ Highlights What James 1:19 teaches about patience, listening, and responding with grace How our reactions reflect God’s character to those around us Why slowing down and practicing gentleness leads to healthier relationships The connection between our faith, accountability, and emotional responses A prayerful reminder to welcome God’s correction and grow in humility

In our two chapters from 2 Kings 11 and 12 we have the story of the faithful boy king, Joash, who came to the throne at the age of seven. We also have the elimination of the remnants of Ahab's household in Judah - that is of Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. The treacherous Queen thought she had destroyed all the seed Royal in Judah. But the faithful high priest Jehoiadah, together with his remarkable and equally faithful covenant wife Jehosheba (Joash's aunt) hid and protected the heir to the throne in the temple of Yahweh). Upon the heir reaching 7 years of age the high priest set in train events that saw Athaliah's destruction, and the true monarchy restored. The remainder of the chapter records the covenant that Jehoiadah made with the people in concord with the king to remove Baal worship from Judah. Joash rules faithfully for forty years because of the faithful influence of his uncle on him. However, despite the removal of Baal worship, idolatry still persisted with many of Judah. Under Joash's influence he arranged for the temple to be repaired from funds voluntarily placed in a wooden box. The workers were paid from this, and accounting was not required due to their honesty. Joash bought time for the Kingdom of Judah from becoming subjects of Ben-Hadad and by paying tribute. The servants of Joash conspire against him and replace him with his son, Amaziah. In Ezekiel 2 we read of the prophet's commissioning as a priest. Ezekiel is called 'son of man' - a frequently used title of our Lord Jesus Christ. This title is emblematic of one, the Son of Man, our Lord Jesus Christ, whose mission would be so difficult, and so critically strategic to Yahweh's saving of the world from sin, that it necessitated that God be his Father in order for him to have the capability to successfully undertake the mission, without ensuring his success in any way, from his own love and complete trust and obedience of his Father. Ezekiel's mission was, as was Christ's, to a rebellious people who would refuse to listen. Ezekiel is told by the LORD that he will be savagely opposed by his people, but he is not to be afraid as the Almighty will be with him. In the test of time as Ezekiel's words from his Sovereign come to pass the nation will know that Yahweh's prophet will be vindicated in their midst. In 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 Paul encourages extreme generosity in giving support to the poor believers of Jerusalem. Paul had seen the need for this fund for some time and had arranged for the Gentile ecclesias to share their material wealth in the same way that God had blessed the Gentile believers in Christ in partaking of the Hope of Israel - the gospel that had been preached to Abraham and his seed. The Apostle says that generosity is of our Heavenly Father, who provides unstintingly for all of His children. Consider this, all we have is God's anyway; and not our own. When we give it is only what He has first given us. And if we feel we cannot give then think again. Our Heavenly Father is always able to recompense faithful service. But our greatest reason for giving is out of our gratefulness to Him for what He has given us in His Son. Chapter 9 verses 15 ESV read aloud - "Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!" Pause and Ponder. We too can show our gratitude to our Father by generously supporting through prayer and contributing of our abundance to our needy brothers.Thanks for joining us - we pray you found these comments helpful in your appreciation of God's words, join again tomorrow at https://christadelphianvideo.org/christadelphian-daily-readings/

Pastor Daniel teaches that knowing and loving the gospel will help you when you pray to your Heavenly Father.

Yes you are in!  And I'm back.  About 3 weeks investing time with family and friends in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.  Ironically, some of those very loved ones can hold me back.  Even myself.  How about you?  Your play of the day, here you go...Thank you Rick Warren!  Back on the board.  A great series on Naysayers.  You can hear more of that at this link...https://www.pastorrick.com/current-teaching/series/a-toolbox-for-life-2025?view=ignoring-the-naysayers-part-2-2025Who are your naysayers?  As you reflect on that, let's pick on me.  I can absolutely be my own naysayer.  No doubt about it.  Who do I think I am?  Is this podcast really making a difference?  Is it helping anybody?  What if I'm wrong?  Well, at least I cover that with Rom 3:23.Next, absolutely loved ones and some of those closest to me.  Think about it this way.  I best some of the dumbest and/or meanest things you have said has been to a loved one.  Why?  Because we are closest.  The closer you get the more friction that can occur...Rom 3:23.  Too old?  Too young?  Too dumb?  Too many mistakes?  Anything is possible with God.  You have the Ultimate Power Source if you so choose.  Matt 19:26.  Oh and God loves to leverage the least likely to do the greatest works.  It's all over the Bible.  So if you think you are the least likely and others tell you are the least likely you may be Prospect A1.Versed ones, you know it is absolutely all over the Bible.  Rick talks about David and Moses.  Think about Joseph and his brothers.  Think Jonah and himself wrestling with God abut going to Nineveh.  Think Jacob wrestling with God.  Think Jesus and his disciples.  Think Jesus and the public that crucified Him.  Think Paul and his resistance.  Need I go on?So now you know you are not alone.  What does your Heavenly Father want you to do that you've let others or even yourself get in the way?On the flip side, who encourages you to do the right thing that honors your Heavenly Father and loves others?  Matt 22: 36-40.Luke 4:24 NLTBut I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown.https://www.bible.com/bible/116/luk.4.24A special shout out to listener Aftyn.  A 20 something year old listener and encourager.  As I was wrestling with what I'm doing here, as if his timing was perfect, he chimes in on how much he loves the listens.  So much that he digs back on the older ones.  Thank you Lord for Aftyn and his timely encouragement.  Bonus, I ended up learning that Aftyn has a gift in music.  Stay tuned as I will encouraging him back.  Sharing his music and maybe even getting to interview him and sharing Aftyn with you.  You are going to want to meet this Young Man.  He is gifted.  Ending on a prayer note...

It is time this very minute to pray and seek God. Time to set our timers and pray for the minute. This podcast encourages us to stop for a minute and, now, in the presence of our Heavenly Father—with praise and prayer—worship Him in Jesus' name and in the power of the Holy Spirit. ———— *We do not own the rights to music played on this podcast.

There is no truth more fundamental in all of God's Word than this truth. God is for us. God is not against us. God is not neutral towards us. Because of Jesus Christ, once and for all, the question is settled. God is for us.Main Points:1. Paul's question is, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” In other words, who can really fight against us, who can defeat us, if God is on our side?2. Name the enemies of the people of God. Can the devil stand against us? No, because he has been defeated. Can the world stand against us? No, because Jesus has overcome the world. Can the flesh destroy us? No, because in Jesus Christ we overcome the temptations of the flesh. So, today, let's be secure in our victory! Who dares to stand against us if God is for us?3. No matter what Satan, our accuser, says, no matter the circumstances we face, nothing can come against the love God has for us and win. We may be mocked, beaten, bruised, or even killed for our faith in Jesus. Even if we face the worst of circumstances, we are loved and accepted by our Heavenly Father because of what Jesus has done for us on the cross.Today's Scripture Verses:Romans 8:31 - “If God is for us, who can be against us?”Psalm 23:4 - “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” Matthew 28:20 - “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age”. Quick Links:Donate to support this podcastLeave a review on Apple PodcastsGet a copy of The 5 Minute Discipleship JournalConnect on SocialJoin The 5 Minute Discipleship Facebook GroupLoren Hicks on Instagram

Jesus draws near to us as a gentle healer, bearing wounds of His own. He enters not by force, but with the quiet grace of one who knows the burden of grief and the chill of despair. Into the very heart of our affliction He steps, not to scorn it, but to sanctify it. By His touch, the bitter is made sweet, and what was broken begins to mend. For such is His purpose: not to shield us from pain, but to dwell within it with us, and from within, to transform us into creatures of light, made new as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father. --- Help Spread the Good News --- Father Brian's homilies are shared freely thanks to generous listeners like you. If his words have blessed you, consider supporting this volunteer effort. Every gift helps us continue recording and sharing the hope of Jesus—one homily at a time. Give Here: https://frbriansoliven.org/give

Diana introduces Randy Goodwin, a deliverance minister with over 20 years of experience in helping survivors of Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) and occult practices find freedom and healing through Jesus Christ. Diana and Randy discuss the complex nature of SRA, how individuals get involved, and the spiritual warfare involved in the healing process. Randy emphasizes the importance of sincerity and free will in seeking deliverance, while sharing insights on the tactics of the enemy and the transformative power of prayer and scripture. The episode also highlights the significance of professional counseling and offers resources for those looking to break free from the spiritual bondage of SRA. 00:00 Introduction to the Podcast 00:45  753 Academy 01:43 Introducing the Series on Cults 03:23 Meet Randy Goodwin: Deliverance Minister 03:57 Randy's Journey into Deliverance Ministry 08:20 Understanding the Occult and SRA 11:49 The Impact of Media and Programming 16:03 Hope and Deliverance for SRA Victims 18:51 The Process of Deliverance 22:35 Critique of a Podcast on Demon Possession 23:11 Pentecostal Perspectives on Demons 24:04 The Deceptive Nature of the Enemy 27:10 Prayers for Protection and Sincerity in Faith 29:17 The Importance of Sincere Repentance 31:59 Healing from Trauma through Faith 35:32 Resources for SRA Survivors 38:17 Final Thoughts and Encouragement Bio: Randy Goodwins deliverance ministry, SRA Survivor ministry has helped people suffering from the effects of SRA Survivors, witchcraft, deprogramming, trafficking survivors, the occult, rejection, depression, physical illnesses, molestation, verbal and emotional abuse, pain/trauma, DID/MPD, schizophrenia, voices (Dissociate Identity Disorder/Multiple Personality Disorder/MPD/DID/BPD/ADHD/OCD/CDD) and many more. I help SRA survivors and those in the Occult get free and serve Christ.  Email deliverancenw@gmail.com website https://randygoodwin.org/ Link Tree Website: https://dswministries.org Subscribe to the podcast: https://dswministries.org/subscribe-to-podcast/ Social media links: Join our Private Wounds of the Faithful FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1603903730020136 Twitter: https://twitter.com/DswMinistries YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxgIpWVQCmjqog0PMK4khDw/playlists Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dswministries/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DSW-Ministries-230135337033879 Keep in touch with me! Email subscribe to get my handpicked list of the best resources for abuse survivors! https://thoughtful-composer-4268.ck.page #abuse #trauma Affiliate links: Our Sponsor: 753 Academy: https://www.753academy.com/ Can't travel to The Holy Land right now? The next best thing is Walking The Bible Lands! Get a free video sample of the Bible lands here! https://www.walkingthebiblelands.com/a/18410/hN8u6LQP An easy way to help my ministry: https://dswministries.org/product/buy-me-a-cup-of-tea/ A donation link: https://dswministries.org/donate/   Randy Goodwin  [00:00:00] Welcome to the Wounds of the Faithful Podcast, brought to you by DSW Ministries. Your host is singer songwriter, speaker and domestic violence advocate, Diana Winkler. She is passionate about helping survivors in the church heal from domestic violence and abuse and trauma. This podcast is not a substitute for professional counseling or qualified medical help. Now here is Diana. Hello everyone. Welcome to the podcast. We do have a great guest for you, as always for you. I'm very grateful that you are here today with me. I'm also thankful for our sponsor 7 5 3 Academy that we have here in the local Phoenix area. Their mission statement is we create the capability to deal with anything life may [00:01:00] bring. We believe in life, success, and good health. We believe students that learn the 7, 5 3 philosophy through self-defense training, gain the perseverance to overcome any challenge in life while strengthening the body, mind, and spirit. Our academy is a supportive and inclusive environment where we provide the training for what comes next. So that is click on the link in the show notes for more information, 7 5 3 academy.com. Their email is info at 7 5 3 academy.com . And tell Coach Eric and Coach David that I sent you. So now onto show. I am going to be doing a series on cults, and thought that I would start with Randy Goodwin, who reached out to be a part of the show. So I will say that SRA is Satanic ritual abuse. Randy [00:02:00] Goodwin is a deliverance minister specializing in SRA trauma, SRA survivor therapy, survivor resources, occult deliverance deprogramming, and a deliverance prayer. Those who have suffered from spiritual bondage. With over 20 years of experience in ministry, Randy has helped hundreds of SRA survivors, traffic survivors, and individuals seeking OC cult freedom, while lasting freedom from spiritual abuse. His approach is rooted in the belief that Jesus Christ has the power to break every chain and set people free. From the spiritual warfare, holding them back through personalized counseling. So, needless to say, this is going to be a dark episode. So be mindful of that. We're gonna define what an, what the occult is, mind [00:03:00] control, trafficking, and how to get out of all that. So I won't delay it any further. I hope that this episode is informative and helps. If not you, then somebody you love, to be free of occult practices. So here's my conversation with Randy Goodwin. Please welcome my guest today, Randy Goodwin. Thank you so much for coming on the show. Well, thank you for having me. I appreciate it. And, we're gonna do our best here to get what we need across and hopefully we can help somebody in the process. Yes, absolutely. I already gave the warning about this is going to be about a dark topic, the occult, to be sensitive about. If that is your background and might trigger you, then maybe come back later if you need to or take a break. Randy, let's talk a little bit [00:04:00] about your background and how you got into this line of work, because we don't grow up saying, oh, I wanna be a cult d programmer. You know what I mean? I had pretty much a normal life like everybody else did. You know, you go through teens, you get rebellious, you go off and do this and do that. And so you fast forward into my adult life and at the end, I don't wanna say the end of my adult life, but, about eight years ago, I just got to the point where I knew I had stuff in me. And what I mean by stuff, I knew I had demons. 'cause otherwise you wouldn't be doing this, you wouldn't be doing that. This wouldn't be happening. And, you know, I got a laundry list, right? Mm-hmm. Okay. And so the. Best [00:05:00] thing you can do at that point, if you really want to be free, the starting place, if you really want God to come, the first thing that everybody has to do is just get on your knees with a humble heart and a true humble heart. You're not just saying, God, help me. Alright, then go off and get a cheeseburger. You gotta really be serious. Seek the Lord and you shall find him. Knock and the door shall be open. So how hard are you gonna knock? How hard are you gonna seek? Well, I was serious. I really was. And I told God I was. And so now after you say that to God, now we're gonna see what your actions are gonna do to see if you really mean it right. Yes. Yeah, exactly. So I sought out [00:06:00] people to help me sought out. A lot of people, talked to, a lot of people, finally got connected, you know, to a few people, and I had things removed from me. And let me tell you, when you get things removed from you, it feels like this. Ah, yes. Just, I just feel lighter, you know, you can just feel the lightness come off you, the heaviness, and you become mm-hmm. You become lighter. And so here's what's totally cool. Once this stuff left, you know how we walk, how the scriptures say we have blinders on our eyes. And we can't see because we might have a log or something. So you can't really, yeah, you can't talk to anybody else. 'cause you got this, you know, the entire house on your eye. Right. Not just one log the entire house. So, but once you get some of this stuff lifted [00:07:00] and the blinders removed, you can see a little more clearly. Mm-hmm. And that's what happened to me. Some blinders came off and anybody listening, that's exactly what can happen to you too. 'cause God wants that to happen to you. So these, some blinders came off me and I just sat there and I go, okay, I get it now. Okay. I can see what you're telling me. Wow. It took this, this long for me to hear you to say that one little sentence. Yeah, that's right. It has been so. You know, then I just knew that, I knew in my knower, this is how I wanna make other people feel. And so I just went down the path I've never looked back and this is what I'm supposed to do. And God has taken me into a certain little area where he wants me to stay. That's how I got into it. That's what motivates me. And this is why I do it. 'cause I want other people to feel this way too. Absolutely. It all starts with our, humble [00:08:00] heart. And then being serious, you gotta be serious. Mm-hmm. And if you have to seek out certain people. Yeah, then it's okay. And God will connect you to the correct person. So I wanted to ask, for our, listeners, some different terminologies. Maybe they won't be so familiar with. What is the occult actually and Satanic ritual abuse and how do you actually get involved with something like that? Are there like gateways to satanic abuse? So, SRA is short for Satanic ritual abuse and the occult and satanic ritual abuse kind of go hand in hand. It's like a hand in glove because everybody that's in. And they're involved in an SRA scenario, then they are highly involved in the occult. For one, [00:09:00] you're born into the family. You just don't decide. One day I think I wanna be an SRAs, survivor, so you pick up the yellow pages. No, you're born into this and you're chosen, you're given over even before you're, even before you're conceived. And when you're, conceived, there's certain things that happen within the mother's womb where they amplify this, concreteness to make you in this circle. And then when you're born, you're born with these entities. Here's the thing, it's not their fault. They're victims. Mm-hmm. I always say this, if the enemy can, he will. He's looking for, he's just looking for an opportunity. I don't leave, I don't like the word of legal right. Or open doors, you know, we all use those terms, which there, there's truth in those terms. But I like the word opportunity. The enemy's an opportunist. If he can find a way, he will find a way. And in, in a family, [00:10:00] in an SRA family, there's always a coven involved and there's certain, people within the family who are in this coven, the parents and the grandparents. And there'll be a bunch of, other people involved also. And all these other people will, throughout this victims life where they will ensure their, instability and ensure the fragmentation of that individual. And once they can do that, then it's really difficult for that individual to get free. Not impossible, but difficult. So the occult and the Satanic ritual abuse, they go hand in hand. They're like a hand in the glove because they're, they feed off of each [00:11:00] other and it's usually like a satanist family. And these families can go way, way back. It's just, they did it, parents did it, their parents did it, and so on and so forth. And it's just what they do and their motivation for doing this is all pure selfishness. Of course, it's, it's all about power because when they can inflict things on an individual entities can come into that individual, which they get higher ranking entities into them, which brings them up in the rankings in the occult, makes 'em a little stronger in, you know, Satan's army. And that's their motivation. Mm. Sad but true. That's kind of the, just of the whole thing, you know? Uh, so you are about the same age, it looks like, and you remember back in the eighties, the satanic panic and that, the church would [00:12:00] claim that, if you go trick or treating or you watch certain things, or you have cabbage patch dolls or you watch the Smurfs, that mm-hmm. That, that is all a gateway into the occult and Satan having power over you. And do you remember that time period? And is there any legitimacy to that? I remember that time period, and I remember the time period before that. Yeah. Okay. So there's a lot of legitimacy to that. And it's no different than it is today. Remember when, TV first started? They call 'em a television program. Well, it is a program. It's a program to program you. And that's where they got that term from. You get a lot of cartoons, and of course we know about all the, you know, the bad movies that are out there, all the, you know, the right horror movies or [00:13:00] slasher films or whatever. Yeah. We know there's all kinds of stuff in those. Okay. That's a given. But you could get even cartoons. If we can get you at a young age, then we can make you go off course. And if you go off course, then you're not gonna serve the truer God and Father when you get older. And if we can still instill something into the, the child's brain while they're sitting in front of the TV set, like very common today, then we can make that child go off course. And that's what they wanna do. And there's actual, programs that are written into these cartoons that do that. And it comes, from the ruling families and the people that control all the media. So there are some people that would probably fall for that type of programming, but others may not. Is there? Well, what it does, is just everything, is like line upon line and once one thing happens, it makes you just a little bit numb, just a tiny, tiny, tiny bit. [00:14:00] Then it keeps compounding and keeps compounding, and you do this year after year after year, and then the next thing you know, you're, you're off course. If the enemy can get you just see, like right now, if you can just get you just looking like this, just slightly off, he has success and so that's what the enemy wants and with the cartoons. And even like all the Marvel comics, all of them, every one of them, they're all based upon, demons. When those programs that they're actually written, that coded information will actually go into your brain and your brain will get a code inside it. And now your computer holds that information maybe a little deep, but it's just, it's just a way the enemy can make you go off course. Mm-hmm. And that's, we don't want that. And with SRA people, all of the, things that they have to [00:15:00] endure and all this stuff, it's a way to fragment them. And fragment their soul into all these parts. And basically it creates, inside them, it creates a web undetectable by most people. And most deliverance people will just chase and chase and chase, and then let's go around the same mountain and these people will never get free. Yeah. So that's the just of an SRA individual. You're gonna see a, you're gonna see an SRA person like, they'll be in grade school, they're gonna go to school, they're gonna attend school, and they'll get decent grades. Nobody will ever know anything else. It's a nice person, people like that person. But when they go home, things change. Now they have to endure and experience and go through all of this stuff that the family, gives them to separate all this stuff in their [00:16:00] soul, Now where does, the gospel come in, into play there? For example, if you were saved early in life, does that give you a protection against the occult influences? It does. But if you're born into one of these families, you're already given over. You've already crossed the line. Okay. But here's one good thing your free will is never 100% captured. Yeah. Well that's good. One, it's never 100% captured. Your free will. I mean, you may have all kinds of fear, pressure, threats, all this kind of stuff. And they may seem like they're just mountains, but your free will is still intact. You still can choose. Now, like I said, for an SRA person, it's super hard. Yeah, it's super hard to come out of this. But is it impossible? No, nothing's impossible with God. So you just take a [00:17:00] normal person like you were saying, and you raise up a child in the ways they should go, and when they're old, they won't depart from this. And you can pray, you can protect. But when we expose ourselves or we're standing in the wrong place at the wrong time, or we're somewhere where, okay, I shouldn't be here. But you stay anyway. Okay. Just out of embarrassment or whatever. Okay, now Mr. Opportunity pops up and if he can, he will. I always go back to that. You never underestimate the enemies lying capabilities. Right? He's had, we don't know how many years back to Adam and Eve, nobody knows exactly. I don't know how many thousands of years that was, but he's had that many thousands of years to learn human behavior. Yeah. Learn how we think, decide all these things. So he's learned a lot on how to be cunning and deceitful. It's really [00:18:00] important to make sure, you know, that we pray for our children every day. Yeah. And we put on the whole armor of God on ourselves, on our children every day. Especially in these times. Mm-hmm. I mean, these are so vulnerable times. And I say, never let your kids outta your sight. Ever. Not now. Yeah. Yeah. But there, there is hope for those generational curses that you've mentioned. There is a way of escape, and you do have a choice. There is. Even though all these things happen. You know, the SRA individual still can seek out help. I didn't say it was easy 'cause there's a lot of fear, there's a lot of pressure, there's a lot of threats, and so on and so on. But, if they want it bad enough, they will. So you walk us through, maybe somebody that you've helped, like what does that process look like to [00:19:00] where the person is reaching out for help? What is the spark there, and then how do you walk them through the way of escape how to get out of this thing? So, when I'm first contacted, I'll just send a quick email back. Do you feel you're an SRA. A person or someone that was raised in the occult, something like that. And they'll say yes. Then I'll say, okay, let's just meet just for a chat. Just, this is not a session, just a meet and greet. Mm-hmm. And I'm just gonna ask 'em a couple questions. I'm gonna see where they are, I'm gonna see how serious they are, and I wanna see if they're just there to kick the tires or if they're really serious. Mm-hmm. And motivated. You'd be surprised. Most people are just tire kickers really. They're just interested, weird stuff. They're just, yeah. They're just interested, you [00:20:00] know? It's very, very few that wanna stick with it and have the tenacity to follow through. So when I do get somebody. That's serious. Let's say, they are an SRA survivor, then we have specific prayers that we are gonna start with that it's gonna break things all the way back from the very start in very specific prayers. 'cause the Bible tells us to be specific in our prayers. Yes. So I have very specific prayers, and of course we're gonna do some renunciations and we're gonna do some basic things. Normally I'll spend about an hour-ish each time I meet with someone. And then we're gonna go in there because in an SA person, there is programming and this is what keeps all the trauma and all the stuff keeps it intact and it keeps it [00:21:00] hidden. There's hermetic seals over it, and a hermetic seal is like saran wrap over an incident or a ritual or vow oath and ceremony and all that stuff. They hermetically seal it so you can't see it. Can't find it. So we remove those and this programming that's involved in SRA people and those in the occult satanist families and all there's, things that are built that they create inside their soul and inside their mind. And it's layered. Once you pull that main string, then it all comes tumbling down and. Within two to four months, I can get somebody pretty well cleaned out. Doesn't take years to do this really doesn't take years. No, it's interesting. Yeah. I know most deliverance people will chase the traumas and the wounds and try to get those hell healed [00:22:00] up. That's great, but it's not going to, for an SRA survivor, it's not going to get them free. You'd just be going around the mountain like that. You have to get rid of that programming out of there. And so that's what we will do. Mm-hmm. And so, yeah, the main thing is they have to be serious. have to be serious, and they have to be motivated. Then, you know, and with that, then we can move forward. Then we can, you know, get 'em cleaned out. Yeah. Throughout when Jesus was on the earth, people don't realize that he cast out demons a lot in the Bible. He did. I did. I was listening to a podcast, one that I really like. I won't say who it is, but mm-hmm. Ian, this guest did this whole story about demon possession and they left out completely Bible resources and what Jesus had done completely. And I sent him an email and I'm like, you really didn't do your research. You didn't even mention Jesus or all the [00:23:00] demons that he cast out and everything that went with that in the gospels. Jesus had encounters with demons all the time, and they had to obey. He did. He did. I get a lot of flack from the Pentecostals. Him right in the eyes. Okay. But he spoke to Satan while he is looking at Peter right in the eyes. And he said, get behind me Satan. Yeah. I wanna hear what the Pentecostal said. What were they saying to you? Okay. So, uh, the Pentecostal side were, are all about, quickly screaming and yelling, speaking in tongues and, going right after demons and all that. Yeah. They're a little, guess bringing attention to the demons. There's a demon behind every bush and Yeah. Something like that. And [00:24:00] they're very, quick to move, quick to speak, quick to act. And, but like I said, you have to remember the enemy is very cunning. I don't think we give the enemy enough credit for how deceptive and how, much of a liar he is because he's the father of all lies. Mm-hmm. That means he's, uh, that he's, no, no one better than him. You're not gonna outdo the guy. He wrote the book on lying. Yeah. Yeah. So, and then there's Jesus, and then there's Jesus who does water on water. Who does trample out those lies? He does. He removes 'em all. And the greatest gift of all is love. Mm-hmm. Uh, 'cause perfect love casts out all fear. And when there's perfect love in an individual, there's no fear in that individual. And fear is the basis. It's one of the number one things that the enemy uses [00:25:00] to deceive anybody. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. If he can just get in there in any way, any opportunity to deceive, he will. If he can. Well, look at the news now. All you have to do is watch the news, which is designed to induce fear in people and get people upset, even if it's, whether it's true or not depends on who you listen to. But I've seen that in my own home. Like they're freaking out. It's like, now hold on a minute. Calm down. Yeah. And it doesn't matter. Yeah. It doesn't matter if you're Republican or a Democrat. There's Right, there's still things that are said that you could be frightened from Yes. Yes. And that is definitely the enemy doing that behind the scenes. Yeah. Our enemy is not the person in front of us, it's the behind the scenes. Of course. A hundred percent. And the enemy will when he can get something in our soul. It all works in your [00:26:00] subconscious, and that's 90% of your brain. You know, we're talking right now in our 10% from the prefrontal cortex, but the 90% is where the enemy sets up camp. And he gets in there and hides. And if he has an opportunity to come in, he's gonna go in there hide and then try to camouflage it, you know, build things around it so you can't find it. So, let's just say somebody has a recurring dream, bad dream every once in a while. And it might be the same, might not be the same exact dream, but it sure could be, it could be, uh, centered around a theme. If you're having these dreams, you know, you know what I'm talking about? Yeah. I dream about work almost every night. Okay. Maybe you could tell me what that means. Well, there could be some things , if you have a bad dream that comes up, there could be something that got in there that's [00:27:00] making, this bad dream come up. And when you're sleeping and the, during your subconscious, you know, the enemy can really attack you. There. Here's what I do personally every night, and I would encourage everybody to do this before you go to sleep. If you're married and you're a husband, that the husband should pray this prayer. If you're not married and you're the wife, then of course the wife should pray the prayer. Well, you wouldn't be a wife 'cause you wouldn't be married. You pray. Heavenly Father, I put the blood of Jesus over my entire soul, over my wife's soul and over my kids' soul as we sleep tonight and give us sweet sleep in Jesus' name and I'll praise you. That's what I pray every night that would encourage everybody to pray that prayer. Yeah, because it does help. It does. And then [00:28:00] after that, you pray this, say true Lord God. And Father, when I wake, I put the word of God before me and my family. For the entire day in Jesus name. So you are already putting out the word before you, before you even get up. Yeah. And those aren't very long prayers. I mean, doesn't take, they're not long prayers, doesn't take much. You see, that's a whole nother thing. Jesus talked to the Pharisees, you know, these are guys that are scholars. They knew of the first five books of the Bible, probably by heart. Yes. Okay. But we have to know him. And when we have that, we have that relationship with Christ. We can communicate, you know, as talking to our daddy, talking to our Heavenly Father. So if you really mean with your prayer, if you mean it, you don't have to have a lofty [00:29:00] prayer. You just have to be sincere. You have to be sincere. And you know what, when you're praying to God, hate to break it to you guys, but he knows if you're sincere or not. Yeah, absolutely. He knows if we're sincere, there's no, there's no cut in that one. Yeah. That's go, goes back to salvation when we get saved, because I came from a denomination that had altar calls all the time and you know, you think you were saved and then they have, you come up to the altar and pray to get saved, but they're just going through the motions because somebody told 'em to go up there and pray, or somebody gave them a guilt trip. They're going up there and they're, they aren't sincere. They don't know what they're doing up there. I was a missionary for 13 years, so Oh, wow. I'm familiar with knocking on doors and just pray this prayer repeat after me, [00:30:00] and they would just repeat after me, just so they'd get the door shut. And so I would leave. It goes back to salvation. You don't have to say some big fancy, long prayer. It's just the sincerity of your heart that you wanna be saved and you want Jesus to come into your life and, understand he died for you. And, absolutely. Yeah. We need him. Amen. And when I was talking about, SRA, people still have a free will. Mm-hmm. They, they still can reach out for help. That same principle stands true from what you just said. You go up for an altar call. Okay. We're gonna repeat a sentence. Okay. Great. repent. Jesus said, repent and follow me. Yep. Those are the two things he asked. Just repent and follow me. Yeah. Those two things. So if you're truly sincere about your altar call and your repentance, then [00:31:00] your life is gonna show it from that moment forward. And that's what Jesus means. Follow me. It's gonna hit you and you're gonna go, your life is just gonna start changing. It's gonna hit way down, and it's gonna mean something like it never has meant before. Amen to that. Yeah. Yeah. And so it. Our free will stands intact just for that simple out to call. Also, you know, I gave my life to Christ when I was 14 years old and it was a death of my grandmother. And I was just, really close to my grandmother and she passed and I just felt all alone. Aw. And there I was and I started bawling. I felt alone and afraid. I cried out to the Lord right then and there, and I asked him to come into my life and I meant it. Well, thanks. Yeah. And here I am, just a young man and I still mean it. Yeah. I was saved when I was 13, oh, nice. Got saved early in life, thankfully. Yeah. This [00:32:00] free will choice that we have. No matter what you've gone through in life, you might be somebody that, let's say you had a one time event violation from a family member. Well, that causes trauma. Yes. And that causes a forever bad memory and a thought that gets really lodged deep inside, you know? And you might feel, I just can't get past this. This is just too big for me to get past. I've prayed and prayed and prayed, and it just doesn't go away. Well, Jesus can, I know you've probably heard this a million times, but if Jesus. Is allowed to that spot, then he can get that healed. Mm-hmm. If, if he's allowed, I go back to our free will choice if we allow him to do that. And not just pray a prayer, not [00:33:00] just, read a prayer. We have to submit to him and his, perfect will. And he can touch that and he can heal it. Once Jesus touches, uh, wound, like maybe like a one time event, you're still gonna remember it. Okay. You're still gonna remember the event, but it's just not gonna like sting. Hurt like it did. Right. And that's where the enemy lives is on all the emotions and the feelings. That's what he attaches to. And Jesus can take away the enemy from those feelings and emotions if we, if we allow him. Mm-hmm. That's, that's pretty hard sometimes though, yeah. We experienced something like that. A one time trauma or maybe a series of, of things, you know, you lived a, a normal life, but we had a, I don't know, a bad neighbor or a bad relative or some [00:34:00] or something. Getting past that. Now you're an adult. It can be humbling, to. You know, cry out to the father or even tell somebody else about it and talk to 'em about it. And that would make you a victim if you did experience that. But see, here's, here's the thing about being a victim and being perpetrated upon. Being perpetrated makes you a victim, but there was still sin involved. The scriptures tell us to confess our sin one to another, so Jesus. Can heal us. And that's really, see it's easy to do to God, say, oh Lord, forgive me of all my sin. But you know what, it's hard to tell what happened to another person Yeah. This happened, five years ago or 20 years ago, and I need to share it with somebody. That's hard. That's hard to do. Yes. That can seem like a mountain. Wouldn't, wouldn't you agree? Oh yeah. I've got that through my mending, the soul groups. [00:35:00] It's humbling to be the first person that they share that with, and they're scared to death and they've never told a soul and, right. Yeah. Is, definitely, is very hard. But the, the scriptures tell us that's what we need to do. But when we're with another human being, that's very humbling. Mm-hmm. But there's something very, refreshing about it once you tell somebody what happened. Yeah. Yes. It's therapeutic. Very, very. Yeah. For those that are maybe listening and they've been in the occult, or they have a family member in the occult and they are serious about getting free, like, oh, listen, there's somebody here that can help me. Uh, what resources do you have for the listeners? Just go to my website, randy goodwin.org, and you can contact me through there. So do you go through [00:36:00] a course or is it one-on-one coaching? What does that look like? Okay, so you're gonna contact me and then we are gonna meet, we're gonna meet one-on-one and just over the internet just like this. And it's all private. And sessions are gonna be about an hour, hour and a half spaced out, about one week apart. No closer than that because we need a time to reboot. Yeah, because Yeah. And the tube to all that stuff that you talked about. Yeah. Yeah. 'cause we're gonna get into it. We we're gonna get into way more than you and I have even discussed here. Oh, yeah. Way more. And we're, I, we move fast, very fast. I use broad, uh, brush strokes and, but if you're, truly serious, then yes, I can help you. , Of course, they're all asking, is there a cost involved with this? On the website, I do ask for a donation. Here's what's interesting. I have a daughter [00:37:00] who gets social security, okay? So she lives on social security. So she asked me the other day, she goes, dad, um, I wanna give, you know, to my church for a tithe and stuff, but I don't have any money. I'm flat broke. I go, that's not true. You do have something. Do you have 10 cents in your pocket? Yeah. Okay. Then you do have something to give. you have 5 cents? Yeah, I do. Okay, then don't tell me you're broke. You have something to give. You can give something. And by giving something, it puts you into the mix. You're involved. 'cause a money rep, money represents a part of our life. Sure. And when we're put a part of our life into the process, it makes all the difference. I absolutely. I forget you have a book. I have a book, it's Mind Control programming and SRA Survivors. And [00:38:00] it's on Amazon. You just type my name in Randy Goodwin. You can find it. It's on Amazon. Yeah. So that might be a helpful resource also. Anything you'd like to end with, something encouraging for our listeners, something practical. I'd just like to reinforce the fact that if you are an SRA survivor or even if you've had some trauma in your life, then you do have a free will choice. You still have that. It just depends how bad you want to fight through it and get free. That's all up to you. It just like coming to Christ. God's not gonna make you come to him and follow the Lord. It's up to you. You can get free. oh folks, reach out to Randy and his book and, for his sessions if that's gonna help you or a family member. And, thanks so much for coming [00:39:00] on the show. I sure appreciate it. This has been a great conversation, Randy. Thank you so much for having me. And I appreciate your time and all your efforts that you put into your show. Oh, God bless you. God bless you. Thank you for listening to the Wounds of the Faithful Podcast. If this episode has been helpful to you, please hit the subscribe button and tell a friend. You could connect with us at DSW Ministries dot org where you'll find our blog, along with our Facebook, Twitter, and our YouTube channel links. Hope to see you next week.    

Reach Out: Please include your email and I will get back to you. Thanks!Ephesians 4Paul urges believers to live in unity, maturity, and holiness as members of Christ's body. He calls them to walk in humility, gentleness, patience, and love, striving to maintain the unity of the Spirit. There is one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one Father who is over all, through all, and in all. Christ has given apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to equip the church for ministry and spiritual growth. Followers of Christ must mature in faith, avoiding false teachings and growing into Him, the head of the church. They should cast off their old sinful ways and embrace a new life of righteousness. Paul encourages honesty, kindness, forgiveness, and speaking words that uplift others, reflecting God's love in all our relationships.  Are you walking in a manner worthy of God's calling? The most observable proof is in how we treat one another. We share a common faith and life in Christ, and we must exhibit gentleness, patience, love, and enduring tolerance towards each other. We cannot be in fellowship with God while being at odds with fellow believers. The apostles and prophets of Jesus's time taught about Him to help us refute false doctrine and speak the truth in love, building each other up. While people in the world may have hardened hearts, God's people possess soft, compassionate spirits. We must be honest, charitable, mindful of our words, free of bitterness, and abundantly forgiving, in honor of the mercy of our King. Heavenly Father, implore us to walk in a manner that brings honor to Your name. Help us understand that attitudes and actions among Christians are central to being unique and united in this divided world. Grant us the humility to continue learning about Jesus, so we can refute errors concerning Him, and so that we might know how to encourage and support fellow members of the body of Christ. Soften our hearts. Deepen our compassion and love for one another. We commit to being honest, helpful, and generous among believers and all of humanity, as Jesus is with us. Thought Questions: -       Are you a uniting, patient, peaceable presence among the people of God? How important to God is your Christ-like light among Christians? -       What unique gifts has God given you to use among His people? How are you presently cultivating and exercising those gifts? -       How mindful are you of your words, especially during contentious times? What makes Christians different than the world in their speech?

WORD: ENDURE This week we are studying, Be Still and Know That I Am God, Doctrine and Covenants 98-101 in Come, Follow Me. Here's what to look forward to in this episode: IS GOD GOOD? ANGELS ARMS WHAT TOWER ARE YOU BUILDING? BE STILL AND KNOW We love studying with you! Grace and David You will find the word of the week, teaching tips, and more in our newsletter. Sign up here: www.dontmissthisstudy.com Videos can be found on YouTube: Don't Miss This Grace Freeman Instagram: @thisweeksgrace David Butler Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mrdavebutler/ Instagram: @mrdavebutler Come, Follow Me is a resource offered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is designed to be used in the home to support personal and family scripture study to build faith in Heavenly Father and His plan of salvation and in the Savior Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Come, Follow Me is self-contained and adequate, when used properly. Products and materials designed to supplement this resource, though they may be helpful in some instances, are not necessary for a successful home study program. Don't Miss This Team hello@dontmissthisstudy.com

In this episode, filmed in Caesarea, Israel, Rabbi Schneider draws us closer to the profound affirmation of our Heavenly Father. He strengthens our bond with the Lord, encourages us to confront our spiritual battles, and enlightens us with ways to truly understand our self-worth and divine identity. **** BECOME A MONTHLY PARTNER - https://djj.show/YTAPartner   **** DONATE - https://djj.show/YTADonate  **** TEACHING NOTES - https://djj.show/5m9 

God cares about your mental health! He surrounds us with community and resources when we need them. We can be honest with Him processing our emotions and pain in His arms. His truth, love, mercy, and grace heal our hearts and set us free. In this conversation, Laurie Crouch, Dr. Anita Phillips, Sheila Walsh, Dr. DeeDee Freeman, and Blynda Lane get real about depression, anxiety, and our mental health.   If you enjoyed this episode, we encourage you to go back and listen to the previous conversations in this series: 1. Healing Begins with the Heart 2. Emotional & Physical Healing ------- If you are feeling weary today, run to your Heavenly Father! When we don't know what to pray, the Psalms give words to our emotions. Read 15 Psalms to Heal Your Heart.   Do you want more Better Together? We have 1000+ conversations available! Start watching now for free on the TBN+ app!   --------  If you need prayer, join our community on Instagram // Facebook // YouTube // TikTok  and let us know how we can pray for you! ---------  Better Together is TBN's first daily original program made by women for women! We discuss faith, family, friends, and so much more—no topic is off-limits. Find out what happens when real friends get together for real conversations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week I'm diving into Doctrine and Covenants 93—“Receive of His Fulness.” I talk about Elder Renlund's message on “Infuriating Unfairness” and the importance of being stone-catchers instead of stone-throwers, share some powerful listener stories about following the prophet, and explore how we grow grace by grace, just like the Savior did. We'll look at what it means to climb the ladder of exaltation one step at a time, how light and truth fill our lives as we keep the commandments, and why setting our own homes in order really matters. I hope this episode reminds you that you are a child of God with divine potential and that little by little, you can receive of His fulness. From the manual:  “When you climb up a ladder,” Joseph Smith taught, “you must begin at the bottom, and ascend step by step, until you arrive at the top; and so it is with the principles of the gospel—you must begin with the first, and go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 268). Sometimes that ladder of exaltation seems impossibly high , but we were born to climb to the top. Whatever limitations we may see in ourselves, Heavenly Father and His Son see something glorious in us, something godlike. Just as Jesus Christ “was in the beginning with the Father,” so “ye were also” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:21, 23). Just as He “continued from grace to grace, until he received a fulness,” so also “you shall receive grace for grace” (verses 13, 20). The restored gospel teaches us about the true nature of God, and so it also teaches us about ourselves and what we can become. Despite the efforts of the “wicked one” (verse 39)—and despite what you feel you may lack—you are a literal child of God with the potential to “in due time receive of his fulness” (verse 19). https://youtu.be/3mzj-gBeAZg?si=2JS0EzsTV4gm4bkB https://youtu.be/JBX-InLxObI?si=F-5cI1YIb6x3UeAD https://youtu.be/tMRm1NfpQYQ?si=FECvAJzW-_fBCuAy https://youtu.be/VZljNTyemcU?si=LL_Bz98ayO9-pNN1 Check out my book, "Feasting on the Words of Christ," where I share a simple, five-step method for receiving answers to your prayers through the scriptures. You're really going to love it!

WORD: PATTERN This week we are studying, For the Salvation of Zion, Doctrine and Covenants 94-97 in Come, Follow Me. Here's what to look forward to in this episode: A PATIENT LOVE A MULTIPLICITY OF BLESSING GRAB A SHOVEL HE ALREADY KNEW We love studying with you! Grace and David You will find the word of the week, teaching tips, and more in our newsletter. Sign up here: www.dontmissthisstudy.com Videos can be found on YouTube: Don't Miss This Grace Freeman Instagram: @thisweeksgrace David Butler Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mrdavebutler/ Instagram: @mrdavebutler Come, Follow Me is a resource offered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is designed to be used in the home to support personal and family scripture study to build faith in Heavenly Father and His plan of salvation and in the Savior Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Come, Follow Me is self-contained and adequate, when used properly. Products and materials designed to supplement this resource, though they may be helpful in some instances, are not necessary for a successful home study program. Don't Miss This Team hello@dontmissthisstudy.com