Podcasts about humanly

                        Podcast 353 Beyond anything humanly possible or natural                          Joyful! Evangelist Laverna Spain.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/faith-of-a-mustard-seed-messages-of-faith-through-challenges--4257220/support.

       Beyond anything humanly possible or natural Author Evangelist Laverna Spain.         Joyful!      Evangelist Laverna Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/faith-of-a-mustard-seed-messages-of-faith-through-challenges--4257220/support.

On this episode, my guest is Stephen Jenkinson, culture activist and ceremonialist advocating a handmade life and eloquence. He is an author, a storyteller, a musician, sculptor and off-grid organic farmer. Stephen is the founder/ principal instructor of the Orphan Wisdom School in Canada, co-founded with his wife Nathalie Roy in 2010. Also a sought-after workshop leader, articulating matters of the heart, human suffering, confusions through ceremony.He is the author of several influential books, including Money and the Soul's Desires, Die Wise: A Manifesto for Sanity and Soul (2015), Come of Age: The Case for Elderhood in a Time of Trouble (2018), A Generation's Worth: Spirit Work While the Crisis Reigns (2021), and Reckoning (2022), co-written with Kimberly Ann Johnson. His most recent book, Matrimony: Ritual, Culture, and the Heart's Work, was released in August 2025. He is also involved in the musical project Nights of Grief & Mystery with singer-songwriter Gregory Hoskins, which has toured across North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.Show Notes:* The Bone House of the Orphan Wisdom Enterprise* Matrimony: Ritual, Culture and the Heart's Work* The Wedding Industry* Romantic Sameness and Psychic Withering* The Two Tribes* The Roots of Hospitality* The Pompous Ending of Hospitality* Debt, And the Estrangement of the Stranger* More Than Human Hospitality* The Alchemy of the Orphan Wisdom SchoolHomework:Matrimony: Ritual, Culture, and the Heart's Work | PurchaseOrphan WisdomThe Scriptorium: Echoes of an Orphan WisdomTranscription:Chris: This is an interview that I've been wondering about for a long time in part, because Stephen was the first person I ever interviewed for the End of Tourism Podcast. In Oaxaca, Mexico, where I live Stephen and Natalie were visiting and were incredibly, incredibly generous. Stephen, in offering his voice as a way to raise up my questions to a level that deserve to be contended with.We spoke for about two and a half hours, if I remember correctly. And there was a lot in what you spoke to towards the second half of the interview that I think we're the first kind of iterations of the Matrimony book.We spoke a little bit about the stranger and trade, and it was kind of startling as someone trying to offer their first interview and suddenly hearing something [00:01:00] that I'd never heard before from Stephen. Right. And so it was quite impressive. And I'm grateful to be here now with y'all and to get to wonder about this a little more deeply with you Stephen.Stephen: Mm-hmm. Hmm.Chris: This is also a special occasion for the fact that for the first time in the history of the podcast, we have a live audience among us today. Strange doings. Some scholars and some stewards and caretakers of the Orphan Wisdom enterprise. So, thank you all as well for coming tonight and being willing to listen and put your ears to this.And so to begin, Stephen, I'm wondering if you'd be willing to let those who will be listening to this recording later on know where we're gathered in tonight?Stephen: Well, we're in... what's the name of this township?Nathalie: North Algona.Stephen: North Algona township on the borders, an eastern gate [00:02:00] of Algonquin Park. Strangely named place, given the fact that they were the first casualties of the park being established. And we're in a place that never should have been cleared - my farm. It should never have been cleared of the talls, the white pines that were here, but the admiralty was in need back in the day. And that's what happened there. And we're in a place that the Irish immigrants who came here after the famine called "Tramore," which more or less means "good-frigging luck farming."It doesn't technically mean that, but it absolutely means that. It actually means "sandy shore," which about covers the joint, and it's the only thing that covers the joint - would be sand. You have to import clay. Now, that's a joke in many farming places in the world, but if we wanted any clay, we'd have to bring it in and pay for the privilege.And the farm has been in [00:03:00] my, my responsibility for about 25 years now, pretty close to that. And the sheep, or those of them left because the coyotes have been around for the first time in their casualty-making way... They're just out here, I'm facing the field where they're milling around.And it's the very, very beginnings of the long cooling into cold, into frigid, which is our lot in this northern part of the hemisphere, even though it's still August, but it's clear that things have changed. And then, we're on a top of a little hill, which was the first place that I think that we may have convened a School here.It was a tipi, which is really worked very well considering we didn't live here, so we could put it up and put it down in the same weekend. [00:04:00] And right on this very hill, we were, in the early days, and we've replaced that tipi with another kind of wooden structure. A lot more wood in this one.This has been known as "The Teaching Hall" or "The Great Hall," or "The Hall" or "The Money Pit, as it was known for a little while, but it actually worked out pretty well. And it was I mean, people who've come from Scandinavia are knocked out by the kind of old-style, old-world visitation that the place seems to be to them.And I'd never really been before I had the idea what this should look like, but I just went from a kind of ancestral memory that was knocking about, which is a little different than your preferences, you know. You have different kinds of preferences you pass through stylistically through your life, but the ones that lay claim to you are the ones that are not interested in your [00:05:00] preferences. They're interested in your kind of inheritance and your lineage.So I'm more or less from the northern climes of Northern Europe, and so the place looks that way and I was lucky enough to still have my carving tools from the old days. And I've carved most of the beams and most of the posts that keep the place upright with a sort of sequence of beasts and dragons and ne'er-do-wells and very, very few humans, I think two, maybe, in the whole joint. Something like that. And then, mostly what festoons a deeply running human life is depicted here. And there's all kinds of stories, which I've never really sat down and spoken to at great length with anybody, but they're here.And I do deeply favour the idea that one day [00:06:00] somebody will stumble into this field, and I suppose, upon the remains of where we sit right now, and wonder "What the hell got into somebody?" That they made this mountain of timber moldering away, and that for a while what must have been, and when they finally find the footprint of, you know, its original dimensions and sort of do the wild math and what must have been going on in this sandy field, a million miles in away from its home.And wherever I am at that time, I'll be wondering the same thing.Audience: Hmm.Stephen: "What went on there?" Even though I was here for almost all of it. So, this was the home of the Orphan Wisdom School for more than a decade and still is the home of the Orphan Wisdom School, even if it's in advance, or in retreat [00:07:00] or in its doldrums. We'll see.And many things besides, we've had weddings in here, which is wherein I discovered "old-order matrimony," as I've come to call it, was having its way with me in the same way that the design of the place did. And it's also a grainery for our storage of corn. Keep it up off the ground and out of the hands of the varmints, you know, for a while.Well that's the beginning.Chris: Hmm. Hmm. Thank you Stephen.Stephen: Mm-hmm.Chris: You were mentioning the tipi where the school began. I remember sleeping in there the first time I came here. Never would I have thought for a million years that I'd be sitting here with you.Stephen: It's wild, isn't it?Chris: 12 years later.?: Yeah.Chris: And so next, I'd like to do my best in part over the course of the next perhaps hour or two to congratulate you on the release of [00:08:00] your new book, Matrimony: Ritual, Culture, and the Heart's Work.Stephen: Thank you.Chris: Mm-hmm. I'm grateful to say like many others that I've received a copy and have lent my eyes to your good words, and what is really an incredible achievement.For those who haven't had a chance to lay their eyes on it just yet, I'm wondering if you could let us in on why you wrote a book about matrimony in our time and where it stands a week out from its publication.Stephen: Well, maybe the answer begins with the question, "why did you write a book, having done so before?" And you would imagine that the stuff that goes into writing a book, you'd think that the author has hopes for some kind of redemptive, redeeming outcome, some kind of superlative that drops out the back end of the enterprise.And you know, this is [00:09:00] the seventh I've written. And I would have to say that's not really how it goes, and you don't really know what becomes of what you've written, even with the kind people who do respond, and the odd non-monetary prize that comes your way, which Die Wise gamed that.But I suppose, I wrote, at all partly to see what was there. You know, I had done these weddings and I was a little bit loathe to let go, to let the weddings turn entirely into something historical, something that was past, even though I probably sensed pretty clearly that I was at the end of my willingness to subject myself to the slings and arrows that came along with the enterprise, but it's a sweet sorrow, or there's a [00:10:00] wonder that goes along with the tangle of it all. And so, I wrote to find out what happened, as strange as that might sound to you. You can say, "well, you were there, you kind of knew what happened." But yes, I was witness to the thing, but there's the act of writing a book gives you the opportunity to sort of wonder in three-dimensions and well, the other thing I should say is I was naive and figured that the outfit who had published the, more or less prior two books to this one, would kind of inevitably be drawn to the fact that same guy. Basically, same voice, new articulation. And I was dumbfounded to find out that they weren't. And so, it's sort of smarted, you know?And I think what I did was I just set the whole [00:11:00] enterprise aside, partly to contend with the the depths of the disappointment in that regard, and also not wanting to get into the terrible fray of having to parse or paraphrase the book in some kind of elevator pitch-style to see if anybody else wanted to look at it. You know, such as my touchy sense of nobility sometimes, you know, that I just rather not be involved in the snarl of the marketplace any longer.So, I withdrew and I just set it aside but it wasn't that content to be set, set aside. And you know, to the book's credit, it bothered me every once in a while. It wasn't a book at the point where I was actually trying to engineer it, you know, and, and give it some kind of structure. I had piles of paper on the floor representing the allegation of chapters, trying to figure out what the relationship was [00:12:00] between any of these things.What conceivably should come before what. What the names of any of these things might be. Did they have an identity? Was I just imposing it? And all of that stuff I was going through at the same time as I was contending with a kind of reversal in fortune, personally. And so in part, it was a bit of a life raft to give me something to work on that I wouldn't have to research or dig around in the backyard for it and give me some sort of self-administered occupation for a while.Finally, I think there's a parallel with the Die Wise book, in that when it came to Die Wise, I came up with what I came up with largely because, in their absolute darkest, most unpromising hours, an awful lot of dying people, all of whom are dead now, [00:13:00] let me in on some sort of breach in the, the house of their lives.And I did feel that I had some obligation to them long-term, and that part of that obligation turned into writing Die Wise and touring and talking about that stuff for years and years, and making a real fuss as if I'd met them all, as if what happened is really true. Not just factually accurate, but deeply, abidingly, mandatorily true.So, although it may be the situation doesn't sound as extreme, but the truth is, when a number of younger - than me - people came to me and asked me to do their weddings, I, over the kind of medium-term thereafter, felt a not dissimilar obligation that the events that ensued from all of that not [00:14:00] be entrusted entirely to those relatively few people who attended. You know, you can call them "an audience," although I hope I changed that. Or you could call them "witnesses," which I hope I made them that.And see to it that there could be, not the authorized or official version of what happened, but to the view from here, so to speak, which is, as I sit where I am in the hall right now, I can look at the spot where I conducted much of this when I wasn't sacheting up and down the middle aisle where the trestle tables now are.And I wanted to give a kind of concerted voice to that enterprise. And I say "concerted voice" to give you a feel for the fact that I don't think this is a really an artifact. It's not a record. It's a exhortation that employs the things that happened to suggest that even though it is the way it is [00:15:00] ritually, impoverished as it is in our time and place, it has been otherwise within recoverable time and history. It has.And if that's true, and it is, then it seems to me at least is true that it could be otherwise again. And so, I made a fuss and I made a case based on that conviction.There's probably other reasons I can't think of right now. Oh, being not 25 anymore, and not having that many more books in me, the kind of wear and tear on your psyche of imposing order on the ramble, which is your recollection, which has only so many visitations available in it. Right? You can only do that so many times, I think. And I'm not a born writing person, you know, I come to it maniacally when I [00:16:00] do, and then when it's done, I don't linger over it so much.So then, when it's time to talk about it, I actually have to have a look, because the act of writing it is not the act of reading it. The act of writing is a huge delivery and deliverance at the same time. It's a huge gestation. And you can't do that to yourself, you know, over and over again, but you can take some chances, and look the thing in the eye. So, and I think some people who are there, they're kind of well-intended amongst them, will recognize themselves in the details of the book, beyond "this is what happened and so on." You know, they'll recognize themselves in the advocacy that's there, and the exhortations that are there, and the [00:17:00] case-making that I made and, and probably the praying because there's a good degree of prayerfulness in there, too.That's why.Chris: Thank you. bless this new one in the world. And what's the sense for you?Stephen: Oh, yes.Chris: It being a one-week old newborn. How's that landing in your days?Stephen: Well, it's still damp, you know. It's still squeaky, squeaky and damp. It's walking around like a newborn primate, you know, kind of swaying in the breeze and listening to port or to starboard according to whatever's going on.I don't know that it's so very self-conscious in the best sense of that term, yet. Even though I recorded the audio version, I don't think [00:18:00] it's my voice is found every nook and cranny at this point, yet. So, it's kind of new. It's not "news," but it is new to me, you know, and it's very early in terms of anybody responding to it.I mean, nobody around me has really taken me aside and say, "look, now I want to tell you about this book you wrote." It hasn't happened, and we'll see if it does, but I've done a few events on the other side of the ocean and hear so far, very few, maybe handful of interviews. And those are wonderful opportunities to hear something of what you came up with mismanaged by others, you know, misapprehend, you could say by others.No problem. I mean, it's absolutely no problem. And if you don't want that to happen, don't talk, don't write anything down. So, I don't mind a bit, you know, and the chances are very good that it'll turn into things I didn't have in mind [00:19:00] as people take it up, and regard their own weddings and marriages and plans and schemes and fears and, you know, family mishigas and all the rest of it through this particular lens, you know. They may pick up a pen or a computer (it's an odd expression, "pick up a computer"), and be in touch with me and let me know. "Yeah, that was, we tried it" or whatever they're going to do, because, I mean, maybe Die Wise provided a bit of an inkling of how one might be able to proceed otherwise in their dying time or in their families or their loved ones dying time.This is the book that most readily lends itself to people translating into something they could actually do, without a huge kind of psychic revolution or revolt stirring in them, at least not initially. This is as close as I come, probably, to writing a sequence of things [00:20:00] that could be considered "add-ons" to what people are already thinking about, that I don't force everybody else outta the house in order to make room for the ideas that are in the book. That may happen, anyway, but it wasn't really the intent. The intent was to say, you know, we are in those days when we're insanely preoccupied with the notion of a special event. We are on the receiving end of a considerable number of shards showing up without any notion really about what these shards remember or are memories of. And that's the principle contention I think that runs down the spine of the book, is that when we undertake matrimony, however indelicately, however by rote, you know, however mindlessly we may do it, [00:21:00] inadvertently, we call upon those shards nonetheless.And they're pretty unspectacular if you don't think about them very deeply, like the rice or confetti, like the aisle, like the procession up the aisle, like the giving away of someone, like the seating arrangement, like the spectacle seating arrangement rather than the ritual seating arrangement.And I mean, there's a fistful of them. And they're around and scholars aside maybe, nobody knows why they do them. Everybody just knows, "this is what a wedding is," but nobody knows why. And because nobody knows why, nobody really seems to know what a wedding is for, although they do proceed like they would know a wedding if they saw one. So, I make this a question to be really wondered about, and the shards are a way in. They're the kind of [00:22:00] breadcrumb trail through the forest. They're the little bits of broken something, which if you begin to handle just three or four of them, and kind of fit them together, and find something of the original shape and inflection of the original vessel, kind of enunciates, begins to murmur in your hands, and from it you can begin to infer some three-dimensionality to the original shape. And from the sense of the shape, you get a set sense of contour, and from the sense of contour, you get a sense of scale or size. And from that you get a sense of purpose, or function, or design. And from that you get a sense of some kind of serious magisterial insight into some of the fundament of human being that was manifest in the "old-order matrimony," [00:23:00] as I came to call it.So, who wouldn't wanna read that book?Chris: Mm-hmm.Thank you. Mm-hmm. Thank you, Stephen. Yeah. It reminds me, just before coming up here, maybe two weeks ago, I was in attending a wedding. And there was a host or mc, and initially just given what I was hearing over the microphone, it was hard to tell if he was hired or family or friends. And it turned out he was, in fact, a friend of the groom. And throughout the night he proceeded to take up that role as a kind of comedian.Audience: Mm-hmm.Chris: This was the idea, I guess. Mm-hmm. And he was buzzing and mumbling and swearing into the microphone, [00:24:00] and then finally minimizing the only remnant of traditional culture that showed up in the wedding. And his thing was, okay, so when can we get to the part where it's boom, boom, boom, right. And shot, shot, shot, whatever.Stephen: Right.Chris: There was so much that came up in my memories in part because I worked about a decade in Toronto in the wedding industry.Mm-hmm. Hospitality industry. Maybe a contradiction in terms, there. And there was one moment that really kind of summed it up. I kept coming back to this reading the book because it was everything that you wrote seemed to not only antithetical to this moment, but also an antidote.Anyways, it was in North Toronto and the [00:25:00] owner of the venue - it was a kind of movie theatre turned event venue - and there was a couple who was eventually going to get married there. They came in to do their tasting menu to see what they wanted to put on the menu for the dinner, for their wedding.And the owner was kind of this mafioso type. And he comes in and he sees them and he walks over and he says, "so, you're gonna get married at my wedding factory."Audience: Mm-hmm.Chris: In all sincerity.Stephen: Mm-hmm.Chris: Right.Without skipping a beat. Could you imagine?Stephen: Yeah.I could. I sure could.Chris: Yeah. Yeah.Stephen: I mean, don't forget, if these people weren't doing what the people wanted, they'd be outta business.Audience: Mm-hmm.Stephen: No, that's the thing. This is aiding and abetting. This is sleeping with the enemy, stylistically-speaking. [00:26:00] The fact that people "settle" (that's the term I would use for it), settle for this, the idea being that this somehow constitutes the most honest and authentic through line available to us is just jaw dropping. When you consider what allegedly this thing is supposed to be for. I mean, maybe we'll get into this, but I'll just leave this as a question for now. What is that moment allegedly doing?Not, what are the people in it allegedly doing? The moment itself, what is it? How is it different from us sitting here now talking about it? And how is it different from the gory frigging jet-fuelled aftermath of excess. And how's it different from the cursing alleged master of ceremonies? How can you [00:27:00] tell none of those things belong to this thing?And why do you have such a hard time imagining what doesAudience: Hmm mmChris: Well that leads me to my next question.Stephen: Ah, you're welcome.Chris: So, I've pulled a number of quotes from the book to read from over the course of the interview. And this one for anyone who's listening is on page 150. And you write Stephen,"Spiritually-speaking, most of the weddings in our corner of the world are endogamous affairs, inward-looking. What is, to me, most unnerving is that they can be spiritually-incestuous. The withering of psychic difference between people is the program of globalization. It is in the architecture of most things partaking of the internet, and it is in the homogeneity of our matrimony. [00:28:00] It is this very incestuous that matrimony was once crafted and entered into to avoid and subvert. Now, it grinds upon our differences until they are details.And so, this paragraph reminded me of a time in my youth when I seemed to be meeting couples who very eerily looked like each other. No blood or extended kin relation whatsoever, and yet they had very similar faces. And so as I get older, this kind of face fidelity aside, I continue to notice that people looking for companionship tend to base their search on similitude, on shared interests, customs, experiences, shared anything and everything. This, specifically, in opposition to those on the other side of the aisle or spectrum, to difference or divergence. And so, opposites don't attract anymore. I'm curious what you think this psychic [00:29:00] withering does to an achieve understanding of matrimony.Stephen: Well, I mean, let's wonder what it does to us, generally, first before we get to matrimony, let's say. It demonizes. Maybe that's too strong, but it certainly reconstitutes difference as some kind of affliction, some kind of not quite good enough, some kind of something that has to be overcome or overwhelmed on the road to, to what? On the road to sameness? So, if that's the goal, then are all of the differences between us, aberrations of some kind, if that's the goal? If that's the goal, are all the [00:30:00] differences between us, not God-given, but humanly misconstrued or worse? Humanly wrought? Do the differences between us conceivably then belong at all? Or is the principle object of the entire endeavor to marry yourself, trying to put up with the vague differences that the other person represents to you?I mean, I not very jokingly said years ago, that I coined a phrase that went something like "the compromise of infinity, which is other people." What does that mean? "The compromise of infinity, which is other people." Not to mention it's a pretty nice T-shirt. But what I meant by the [00:31:00] phrase is this: when you demonize difference in this fashion or when you go the other direction and lionize sameness, then one of the things that happens is that compromise becomes demonized, too. Compromise, by definition, is something you never should have done, right? Compromise is how much you surrender of yourself in order to get by. That's what all these things become. And before you know it, you're just beaten about the head and shoulders about "codependence" and you know, not being "true to yourself" as if being true to yourself is some kind of magic.I mean, the notion that "yourself is the best part of you" is just hilarious. I mean, when you think about it, like who's running amuck if yourself is what you're supposed to be? I ask you. Like, who's [00:32:00] doing the harm? Who's going mental if the self is such a good idea? So, of course, I'm maintaining here that I'm not persuaded that there is such a thing.I think it's a momentary lapse in judgment to have a self and to stick to it. That's the point I'm really making to kind of reify it until it turns ossified and dusty and bizarrely adamant like that estranged relative that lives in the basement of your house. Bizarrely, foreignly adamant, right? Like the house guest who just won't f**k off kind of thing.Okay, so "to thine own self be true," is it? Well, try being true to somebody else's self for ten minutes. Try that. [00:33:00] That's good at exercise for matrimony - being true to somebody else's self. You'll discover that their selves are not made in heaven, either. Either. I underscore it - either. I've completely lost track of the question you asked me.Chris: What are the consequences of the sameness on this anti-cultural sameness, and the program of it for an achieved understanding of matrimony.Stephen: Thank you. Well, I will fess up right now. I do so in the book. That's a terrible phrase. I swear I'd never say such a thing. "In my book... I say the following," but in this case, it's true. I did say this. I realized during the writing of it that I had made a tremendous tactical error in the convening of the event as I did it over the years, [00:34:00] and this is what it came to.I was very persuaded at the time of the story that appears in the chapter called "Salt and Indigo" in the book. I was very, very persuaded. I mean, listen, I made up the story (for what it's worth), okay, but I didn't make it up out of nothing. I made it up out of a kind of tribal memory that wouldn't quite let go.And in it, I was basically saying, here's these two tribes known principally for what they trade in and what they love most emphatically. They turn out to be the same thing. And I describe a circumstance in which they exchange things in a trade scenario, not a commerce scenario. And I'm using the chapter basically to make the case that matrimony's architecture derives in large measure from the sacraments of trade as manifest in that story. [00:35:00] Okay. And this is gonna sound obvious, but the fundamental requirement of the whole conceit that I came up with is that there are two tribes. Well, I thought to myself, "of course, there's always two tribes" at the time. And the two tribe-ness is reflected in when you come to the wedding site, you're typically asked (I hope you're still asked) " Are you family or friend of the groom or friend of the bride?" And you're seated "accordingly," right? That's the nominal, vestigial shard of this old tribal affiliation, that people came from over the rise, basically unknown to each other, to arrive at the kind of no man's land of matrimony, and proceeded accordingly. So, I put these things into motion in this very room and I sat people accordingly facing each other, not facing the alleged front of the room. [00:36:00] And of course, man, nobody knew where to look, because you raised your eyes and s**t. There's just humans across from you, just scads of them who you don't freaking know. And there's something about doing that to North Americas that just throws them. So, they're just looking at each other and then looking away, and looking at each other and looking away, and wondering what they're doing here and what it's for. And I'm going back and forth for three hours, orienting them as to what is is coming.Okay, so what's the miscalculation that I make? The miscalculation I made was assuming that by virtue of the seating arrangement, by virtue of me reminding them of the salt and indigo times, by virtue of the fact that they had a kind of allegiance of some sort or another to the people who are, for the moment, betrothed, that those distinctions and those affiliations together would congeal them, and constitute a [00:37:00] kind of tribal affiliation that they would intuitively be drawn towards as you would be drawn to heat on a cold winter's night.Only to discover, as I put the thing into motion that I was completely wrong about everything I just told you about. The nature of my error was this, virtually all of those people on one side of the room were fundamentally of the same tribe as the people on the other side of the room, apropos of your question, you see. They were card carrying members of the gray dominant culture of North America. Wow. The bleached, kind of amorphous, kind of rootless, ancestor-free... even regardless of whether their people came over in the last generation from the alleged old country. It doesn't really claim them.[00:38:00]There were two tribes, but I was wrong about who they were. That was one tribe. Virtually everybody sitting in the room was one tribe.So, who's the other tribe? Answer is: me and the four or five people who were in on the structural delivery of this endeavour with me. We were the other tribe.We didn't stand a chance, you see?And I didn't pick up on that, and I didn't cast it accordingly and employ that, instead. I employed the conceit that I insisted was manifest and mobilized in the thing, instead of the manifest dilemma, which is that everybody who came knew what a wedding was, and me and four or five other people were yet to know if this could be one. That was the tribal difference, if you [00:39:00] will.So, it was kind of invisible, wasn't it? Even to me at the time. Or, I say, maybe especially to me at the time. And so, things often went the way they went, which was for however much fascination and willingness to consider that there might have been in the room, there was quite a bit more either flat affect and kind of lack of real fascination, or curiosity, or sometimes downright hostility and pushback. Yeah.So, all of that comes from the fact that I didn't credit as thoroughly as I should have done, the persistence in Anglo-North America of a kind of generic sameness that turned out to be what most people came here ancestrally to become. "Starting again" is recipe for culture [00:40:00] loss of a catastrophic order. The fantasy of starting again. Right?And we've talked about that in your podcast, and you and I have talked about it privately, apropos of your own family and everybody's sitting in this room knows what I'm talking about. And when does this show up? Does it show up, oh, when you're walking down the street? Does it show up when you're on the mountaintop? Does it show up in your peak experiences? And the answer is "maybe." It probably shows up most emphatically in those times when you have a feeling that something special is supposed to be so, and all you can get from the "supposed to" is the allegation of specialness.Audience: Mm-hmm.Stephen: And then, you look around in the context of matrimony and you see a kind of febral, kind of strained, the famous bridezilla stuff, all of that stuff. [00:41:00] You saw it in the hospitality industry, no doubt. You know, the kind of mania for perfection, as if perfection constitutes culture. Right? With every detail checked off in the checkbox, that's culture. You know, as if everything goes off without a hitch and there's no guffaws. And in fact, anybody could reasonably make the case, "Where do you think culture appears when the script finally goes f*****g sideways?" That's when. And when you find out what you're capable of, ceremonially.And generally speaking, I think most people discovered that their ceremonial illiteracy bordered on the bottomless.That's when you find out. Hmm.Chris: Wow.Stephen: Yeah. And that's why people, you know, in speech time, they reach in there and get that piece of paper, and just look at it. Mm-hmm. They don't even look up, terrified that they're gonna go off script for a minute as [00:42:00] if the Gods of Matrimony are a scripted proposition.Chris: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Thank you for sharing that with us, that degree of deep reflection and humility that I'm sure comes with it.Stephen: Mea Culpa, baby. Yeah, I was, I got that one totally wrong. Mm-hmm. And I didn't know it at the time. Meanwhile, like, how much can you transgress and have the consequences of doing so like spill out across the floor like a broken thermometer's mercury and not wise up.But of course, I was as driven as anybody. I was as driven to see if I could come through with what I promised to do the year before. And keeping your promise can make you into a maniac.Audience: Hmm hmm.Chris: But I imagine that, you [00:43:00] know, you wouldn't have been able to see that even years later if you didn't say yes in the first place.Stephen: Oh, yeah. Yeah. And I wouldn't have been able to make the errors.Chris: Right.Stephen: Right. Yeah. I mean, as errors go, this is not a mortal sin. Right, right. And you could chalk it up to being a legitimate miscalculation. Well, so? All I'm saying is, it turns out I was there too, and it turns out, even though I was allegedly the circus master of the enterprise, I wasn't free and clear of the things we were all contending with, the kind of mortality and sort of cultural ricketiness that were all heirs to. That's how I translated it, as it turns out.So, PS there was a moment, [00:44:00] which I don't remember which setting it was now, but there was a moment when the "maybe we'll see if she becomes a bride" bride's mother slid up to me during the course of the proceedings, and in a kind of stage whisper more or less hissed me as follows."Is this a real wedding?"I mean, that's not a question. Not in that setting, obviously not. That is an accusation. Right. And a withering one at that. And there was a tremendous amount of throw-down involved.So, was it? I mean, what we do know is that she did not go to any of the weddings [00:45:00] that she was thinking of at the time, and go to the front of the room where the celebrant is austerely standing there with the book, or the script, or the well-intentioned, or the self-penned vows and never hissed at him or her, "is this a real wedding?"Never once did she do that. We know that.Right.And I think we know why. But she was fairly persuaded she knew what a real wedding was. And all she was really persuaded by was the poverty of the weddings that she'd attended before that one. Well, I was as informed in that respect as she was, wasn't I? I just probably hadn't gone to as many reprobate weddings as she had, so she had more to deal with than I did, even though I was in the position of the line of fire.And I didn't respond too well to the question, I have to say. At the moment, I was rather combative. But I mean, you try to do [00:46:00] what I tried to do and not have a degree of fierceness to go along with your discernment, you know, just to see if you can drag this carcass across the threshold. Anyway, that happened too.Chris: Wow. Yeah. Dominant culture of North America.Stephen: Heard of it.Chris: Yeah. Well, in Matrimony, there's quite a bit in which you write about hospitality and radical hospitality. And I wanted to move in that direction a little bit, because in terms of these kind of marketplace rituals or ceremonies that you were mentioning you know, it's something that we might wonder, I think, as you have, how did it come to be this [00:47:00] way?And so I'd like to, if I can once again, quote from matrimony in which you speak to the etymology of hospitality. And so for those interested on page 88,"the word hospitality comes from hospitaller, meaning 'one who cares for the afflicted, the infirm, the needy.' There's that thread of our misgivings about being on the receiving end of hospitality. Pull on it. For the written history of the word, at least, it has meant, 'being on the receiving end of a kind of care you'd rather not need.'"End quote.Stephen: That's so great. I mean, before you go on with the quote. It's so great to know that the word, unexamined, just kind of leaks upside, doesn't it? Hospitality, I mean, nobody goes "Hospitality, ew." [00:48:00] And then, if you just quietly do the obvious math to yourself, there's so much awkwardness around hospitality.This awkwardness must have an origin, have a home. There must be some misgiving that goes along with the giving of hospitality, mustn't there be? How else to understand where that kind of ickiness is to be found. Right? And it turns out that the etymology is giving you the beginnings of a way of figuring it out what it is that you're on the receiving end of - a kind of succor that you wish you didn't need, which is why it's the root word for "hospital."Chris: Hmm hmm. Wow.Audience: Hmm.Chris: May I repeat that sentence please? Once more."For the written history of the word, at least, it has meant, [00:49:00] 'being on the receiving end of a kind of care you'd rather not need.'"And so this last part hits home for me as I imagine it does for many.And it feels like the orthodoxy of hospitality in our time is one based not only in transaction, but in debt. And if you offer hospitality to me, then I owe you hospitality.Stephen: Right.Chris: I'm indebted to you. And we are taught, in our time, that the worst thing to be in is in debt.Stephen: Right?Chris: And so people refuse both the desire to give as well as the learning skill of receiving. And this is continuing on page 88 now."But there's mystery afoot with this word. In its old Latin form, hospice meant both 'host' and 'guest.'"Stephen: Amazing. One. Either one, This is absolutely amazing. We're fairly sure that there's a [00:50:00] acres of difference between the giver of hospitality and the receiver that the repertoire is entirely different, that the skew between them is almost insurmountable, that they're not interchangeable in any way. But the history of the word immediately says, "really?" The history of the word, without question, says that "host" and "guest" are virtually the same, sitting in different places, being different people, more or less joined at the hip. I'll say more, but you go ahead with what you were gonna do. Sure.Chris: "In it's proto Indo-European origins, hospitality and hospice is a compound word: gosh + pot. And it meant something like [00:51:00] 'stranger/guest/host + powerful Lord.'It is amazing to me that ancestrally, the old word for guest, host, and stranger were all the same word. Potent ceremonial business, this is. In those days, the server and the serve were partners in something mysterious. This could be confusing, but only if you think of guest, host, and stranger as fixed identities.If you think of them as functions, as verbs, the confusion softens and begins to clear. The word hospice in its ancient root is telling us that each of the people gathered together in hospitality is bound to the others by formal etiquette, yes, but the bond is transacted through a subtle scheme of graces.Hospitality, it tells us, is a web of longing and belonging that binds people for a time, some hithereto unknown to each other is a clutch of mutually-binding elegances, you could say. In its ancient practice, [00:52:00] hospitality was a covenant. According to that accord, however we were with each other. That was how the Gods would be with us. We learn our hospitality by being on the receiving end of Godly administration. That's what giving thanks for members. We proceed with our kin in imitation of that example and in gratitude for it."Mm-hmm.And so today, among "secular" people, with the Gods ignored, this old-time hospitality seems endangered, if not fugitive. I'm curious how you imagine that this rupture arose, the ones that separated and commercialized the radical relationships between hosts and guests, that turned them from verbs to nouns and something like strangers to marketplace functions.[00:53:00]Stephen: Well, of course this is a huge question you've asked, and I'll see if I can unhuge it a bit.Chris: Uhhuh.Stephen: Let's go right to the heart of what happened. Just no preliminaries, just right to it.So, to underscore again, the beauty of the etymology. I've told you over and over again, the words will not fail you. And this is just a shining example, isn't it? That the fraternization is a matter of ceremonial alacrity that the affiliation between host and guest, which makes them partners in something, that something is the [00:54:00] evocation of a third thing that's neither one of them. It's the thing they've lent themselves to by virtue of submitting to being either a host or a guest. One.Two. You could say that in circumstances of high culture or highly-functioning culture, one of the principle attributes of that culture is that the fundament of its understanding, is that only with the advent of the stranger in their midst that the best of them comes forward.Okay, follow that. Yeah.So, this is a little counterintuitive for those of us who don't come from such places. We imagine that the advent of strangers in the midst of the people I'm describing would be an occasion where people hide their [00:55:00] best stuff away until the stranger disappears, and upon the disappearance of the stranger, the good stuff comes out again.You know?So, I'm just remembering just now, there's a moment in the New Testament where Jesus says something about the best wine and he's coming from exactly this page that we're talking about - not the page in the book, but this understanding. He said, you know, "serve your best wine first," unlike the standard, that prevails, right?So again, what a stranger does in real culture is call upon the cultural treasure of the host's culture, and provides the opportunity for that to come forward, right? By which you can understand... Let's say for simplicity's sake, there's two kinds of hospitality. There's probably all kinds of gradations, [00:56:00] but for the purposes of responding to what you've asked, there's two.One of them is based on kinship. Okay? So, family meal. So, everybody knows whose place is whose around the table, or it doesn't matter - you sit wherever you want. Or, when we're together, we speak shorthand. That's the shorthand of familiarity and affinity, right?Everybody knows what everybody's talking about. A lot of things get half-said or less, isn't it? And there's a certain fineness, isn't it? That comes with that kind of affinity. Of course, there is, and I'm not diminishing it at all. I'm just characterizing it as being of a certain frequency or calibre or charge. And the charge is that it trades on familiarity. It requires that. There's that kind of hospitality."Oh, sit wherever you want."Remember this one?[00:57:00]"We don't stand on ceremony here.""Oh, you're one of the family now." I just got here. What, what?But, of course, you can hear in the protestations the understanding, in that circumstance, that formality is an enemy to feeling good in this moment, isn't it? It feels stiff and starched and uncalled for or worse.It feels imported from elsewhere. It doesn't feel friendly. So, I'm giving you now beginnings of a differentiation between how cultures who really function as cultures understand what it means to be hospitable and what often prevails today, trading is a kind of low-grade warfare conducted against the strangeness of the stranger.The whole purpose of treating somebody like their family is to mitigate, and finally neutralize their [00:58:00] strangeness, so that for the purposes of the few hours in front of us all, there are no strangers here. Right? Okay.Then there's another kind, and intuitively you can feel what I'm saying. You've been there, you know exactly what I mean.There's another kind of circumstance where the etiquette that prevails is almost more emphatic, more tangible to you than the familiar one. That's the one where your mother or your weird aunt or whoever she might be, brings out certain kind of stuff that doesn't come out every day. And maybe you sit in a room that you don't often sit in. And maybe what gets cooked is stuff you haven't seen in a long time. And some part of you might be thinking, "What the hell is all this about?" And the answer is: it's about that guy in the [00:59:00] corner that you don't know.And your own ancestral culture told acres of stories whose central purpose was to convey to outsiders their understanding of what hospitality was. That is fundamentally what The Iliad and The Odyssey are often returning to and returning to and returning to.They even had a word for the ending of the formal hospitality that accrued, that arose around the care and treatment of strangers. It was called pomp or pompe, from which we get the word "pompous." And you think about what the word "pompous" means today.It means "nose in the air," doesn't it? Mm-hmm. It means "thinks really highly of oneself," isn't it? And it means "useless, encumbering, kind of [01:00:00] artificial kind of going through the motions stuff with a kind of aggrandizement for fun." That's what "pompous" means. Well, the people who gave us the word didn't mean that at all. This word was the word they used to describe the particular moment of hospitality when it was time for the stranger to leave.And when it was mutually acknowledged that the time for hospitality has come to an end, and the final act of hospitality is to accompany the stranger out of the house, out of the compound, out into the street, and provision them accordingly, and wish them well, and as is oftentimes practiced around here, standing in the street and waving them long after they disappear from view.This is pompous. This is what it actually means. Pretty frigging cool when you get corrected once in a while, isn't it? [01:01:00] Yeah.So, as I said, to be simplistic about it, there's at least a couple of kinds, and one of them treasures the advent of the stranger, understanding it to be the detonation point for the most elegant part of us to come forward.Now, those of us who don't come from such a place, we're just bamboozled and Shanghai'ed by the notion of formality, which we kind of eschew. You don't like formality when it comes to celebration, as if these two things are hostile, one to the other. But I'd like you to consider the real possibility that formality is grace under pressure, and that formality is there to give you a repertoire of response that rescues you from the gross limitations of your autobiography.[01:02:00]Next question. I mean, that's the beginning.Chris: Absolutely. Absolutely. Mm-hmm. Thank you once again, Stephen. So alongside the term or concept of "pompe," in which the the guest or stranger was led out of the house or to the entrance of the village, there was also the consideration around the enforcement of hospitality, which you write about in the book. And you write that"the enforcement of hospitality runs the palpable risk of violating or undoing the cultural value it is there to advocate for. Forcing people to share their good fortune with the less fortunate stretches, to the point of undoing the generosity of spirit that the culture holds dear. Enforcement of hospitality is a sign of the eclipse of hospitality, typically spawned by insecurity, contracted self-definition, and the darkening of the [01:03:00] stranger at the door.Instead, such places and times are more likely to encourage the practice of hospitality in subtle generous ways, often by generously treating the ungenerous."And so there seems to be a need for limits placed on hospitality, in terms of the "pompe," the maximum three days in which a stranger can be given hospitality, and concurrently a need to resist enforcing hospitality. This seems like a kind of high-wire act that hospitable cultures have to balance in order to recognize and realize an honorable way of being with a stranger. And so I'm wondering if you could speak to the possibility of how these limits might be practiced without being enforced. What might that look like in a culture that engages with, with such limits, but without prohibitions?Stephen: Mm-hmm. That's a very good question. [01:04:00] Well, I think your previous question was what happened? I think, in a nutshell, and I didn't really answer that, so maybe see how I can use this question to answer the one that you asked before: what happened? So, there's no doubt in my mind that something happened that it's kind of demonstrable, if only with the benefit of hindsight.Audience: Right.Stephen: Or we can feel our way around the edges of the absence of the goneness of that thing that gives us some feel for the original shape of that thing.So you could say I'm trafficking in "ideals," here, and after a fashion, maybe, yeah. But the notion of "ideals," when it's used in this slanderous way suggests that "it was never like that."Chris: Mm-hmm.Stephen: And I suggest to you it's been like that in a lot of places, and there's a lot of places where it's still like that, although globalization [01:05:00] may be the coup de grâce performed upon this capacity. Okay. But anyway.Okay. So what happened? Well, you see in the circumstance that I described, apropos of the stranger, the stranger is in on it. The stranger's principle responsibility is to be the vector for this sort of grandiose generosity coming forward, and to experience that in a burdensome and unreciprocated fashion, until you realize that their willingness to do that is their reciprocity. Everybody doesn't get to do everything at once. You can't give and receive at the same time. You know what that's called? "Secret Santa at school," isn't it?That's where nobody owes nobody nothing at the end. That's what we're all after. I mean, one of your questions, you know, pointed to that, that there's a kind of, [01:06:00] what do you call that, teeter-totter balance between what people did for each other and what they received for each other. Right. And nobody feels slighted in any way, perfect balance, et cetera.Well, the circumstance here has nothing of the kind going with it. The circumstance we're describing now is one in which the hospitality is clearly unequal in terms of who's eating whose food, for example, in terms of the absolutely frustrated notion of reciprocity, that in fact you undo your end of the hospitality by trying to pay back, or give back, or pay at all, or break even, or not feel the burden of "God, you've been on the take for fricking hours here now." And if you really look in the face of the host, I mean, they're just getting started and you can't, you can't take it anymore.[01:07:00]So, one of the ways that we contend with this is through habits of speech. So, if somebody comes around with seconds. They say, "would you like a little more?"And you say, "I'm good. I'm good. I'm good." You see, "I'm good" is code for what? "F**k off." That's what it's code for. It's a little strong. It's a little strong. What I mean is, when "I'm good" comes to town, it means I don't need you and what you have. Good God, you're not there because you need it you knucklehead. You're there because they need it, because their culture needs an opportunity to remember itself. Right?Okay. So what happened? Because you're making it sound like a pretty good thing, really. Like who would say, "I think we've had enough of this hospitality thing, don't you? Let's try, oh, [01:08:00] keeping our s**t to ourselves. That sounds like a good alternative. Let's give it a week or two, see how it rolls." Never happened. Nobody decided to do this - this change, I don't think. I think the change happened, and sometime long after people realized that the change had had taken place. And it's very simple. The change, I think, went something like this.As long as the guest is in on it, there's a shared and mutually-held understanding that doesn't make them the same. It makes them to use the quote from the book "partners," okay, with different tasks to bring this thing to light, to make it so. What does that require? A mutually-held understanding in vivo as it's happening, what it is.Okay. [01:09:00] So, that the stranger who's not part of the host culture... sorry, let me say this differently.The culture of the stranger has made the culture of the host available to the stranger no matter how personally adept he or she may be at receiving. Did you follow that?Audience: A little.Stephen: Okay. Say it again?Audience: Yes, please.Stephen: Okay. The acculturation, the cultured sophistication of the stranger is at work in his or her strangerhood. Okay. He or she's not at home, but their cultural training helps them understand what their obligations are in terms of this arrangement we've been describing here.Okay, so I think the rupture takes place [01:10:00] when the culturation of one side or the other fails to make the other discernible to the one.One more time?When something happens whereby the acculturation of one of the partners makes the identity, the presence, and the valence of the other one untranslatable. Untranslatable.I could give you an example from what I call " the etiquette of trade," or the... what was the word? Not etiquette. What's the other word?Chris: The covenant?Stephen: Okay, " covenant of trade" we'll call it. So, imagine that people are sitting across from each other, two partners in a trade. Okay? [01:11:00] Imagine that they have one thing to sell or move or exchange and somebody has something else.How does this work? Not "what are the mechanics?" That can be another discussion, but, if this works, how does it work? Not "how does it happen?" How does it actually achieve what they're after? Maybe it's something like this.I have this pottery, and even though you're not a potter, but somebody in your extended family back home was, and you watched what they went through to make a fricking pot, okay?You watched how their hands seized up, because the clay leached all the moisture out of the hands. You distinctly remember that - how the old lady's hands looked cracked and worn, and so from the work of making vessels of hospitality, okay? [01:12:00] It doesn't matter that you didn't make it yourself. The point is you recognize in the item something we could call "cultural patrimony."You recognize the deep-runningness of the culture opposite you as manifest and embodied in this item for trade. Okay? So, the person doesn't have to "sell you" because your cultural sophistication makes this pot on the other side available to you for the deeply venerable thing that it is. Follow what I'm saying?Okay. So, you know what I'm gonna say next? When something happens, the items across from you cease to speak, cease to have their stories come along with them, cease to be available. There's something about your cultural atrophy that you project onto the [01:13:00] item that you don't recognize.You don't recognize it's valence, it's proprieties, it's value, it's deep-running worth and so on. Something happened, okay? And because you're not making your own stuff back home or any part of it. And so now, when you're in a circumstance like this and you're just trying to get this pot, but you know nothing about it, then the enterprise becomes, "Okay, so what do you have to part with to obtain the pot?"And the next thing is, you pretend you're not interested in obtaining the pot to obtain the pot. That becomes part of the deal. And then, the person on the making end feels the deep running slight of your disinterest, or your vague involvement in the proceedings, or maybe the worst: when it's not things you're going back and forth with, but there's a third thing called money, which nobody makes, [01:14:00] which you're not reminded of your grandma or anyone else's with the money. And then, money becomes the ghost of the original understanding of the cultural patrimony that sat between you. That's what happened, I'm fairly sure: the advent, the estrangement that comes with the stranger, instead of the opportunity to be your cultural best when the stranger comes.And then of course, it bleeds through all kinds of transactions beyond the "obvious material ones." So, it's a rupture in translatability, isn't it?Chris: You understand this to happen or have happened historically, culturally, et cetera, with matrimony as well?Stephen: Oh, absolutely. Yeah.Yeah. This is why, for example, things like the fetishization of virginity.Audience: Mm-hmm. [01:15:00]Stephen: I think it's traceable directly to what we're talking about. How so? Oh, this is a whole other long thing, but the very short version would be this.Do you really believe that through all of human history until the recent liberation, that people have forever fetishized the virginity of a young woman and jealously defended it, the "men" in particular, and that it became a commodity to trade back and forth in, and that it had to be prodded and poked at to determine its intactness? And this was deemed to be, you know, honourable behavior?Do you really think that's the people you come from, that they would've do that to the most cherished of their [01:16:00] own, barely pubescent girls? Come on now. I'm not saying it didn't happen and doesn't still happen. I'm not saying that. I'm saying, God almighty, something happened for that to be so.And I'm trying to allude to you now what I think took place. Then all of a sudden, the hymen takes the place of the pottery, doesn't it? And it becomes universally translatable. Doesn't it? It becomes a kind of a ghosted artifact of a culturally-intact time. It's as close as you can get.Hence, this allegation of its purity, or the association with purity, and so on. [01:17:00] I mean, there's lots to say, but that gives you a feel for what might have happened there.Chris: Thank you, Stephen. Thank you for being so generous with your considerations here.Stephen: You see why I had to write a book, eh?Audience: Mm-hmm.Stephen: There was too much bouncing around. Like I had to just keep track of my own thoughts on the matter.But can you imagine all of this at play in the year, oh, I don't know, 2022, trying to put into motion a redemptive passion play called "matrimony," with all of this at play? Not with all of this in my mind, but with all of this actually disfiguring the anticipation of the proceedings for the people who came.Can you imagine? Can you imagine trying to pull it off, and [01:18:00] contending overtly with all these things and trying to make room for them in a moment that's supposed to be allegedly - get ready for it - happy.I should have raised my rates on the first day, trying to pull that off.But anyway.Okay, you go now,Chris: Maybe now you'll have the opportunity.Stephen: No, man. No. I'm out of the running for that. "Pompe" has come and come and gone. Mm.Chris: So, in matrimony, Stephen, you write that"the brevity, the brevity of modern ceremonies is really there to make sure that nothing happens, nothing of substance, nothing of consequence, no alchemy, no mystery, no crazy other world stuff. That overreach there in its scripted heart tells me that deep in the rayon-wrapped bosom of that special day, the modern wedding is scared [01:19:00] silly of something happening. That's because it has an ages-old abandoned memory of a time when a wedding was a place where the Gods came around, where human testing and trying and making was at hand, when the dead lingered in the wings awaiting their turn to testify and inveigh."Gorgeous. Gorgeous.Audience: Mm-hmm.Chris: And so I'm curious ifStephen: "Rayon-wrapped bosom." That's not, that's not shabby.Chris: "Rayon-wrapped bosom of that special day." Yeah.So, I'm curious do you think the more-than-human world practices matrimony, and if so, what, if anything, might you have learned about matrimony from the more-than-human world?Stephen: I would say the reverse. I would say, we practice the more-than-human world in matrimony, not that the more-than-human world practices matrimony. We practice them, [01:20:00] matrimonially.Next. Okay. Or no? I just gonna say that, that's pretty good.Well, where do we get our best stuff from? Let's just wonder that. Do we get our best stuff from being our best? Well, where does that come from? And this is a bit of a barbershop mirrors situation here, isn't it? To, to back, back, back, back.If you're thinking of time, you can kind of get lost in that generation before, or before, before, before. And it starts to sound like one of them biblical genealogies. But if you think of it as sort of the flash point of multiple presences, if you think of it that way, then you come to [01:21:00] credit the real possibility that your best stuff comes from you being remembered by those who came before you.Audience: Hmm.Stephen: Now just let that sit for a second, because what I just said is logically-incompatible.Okay? You're being remembered by people who came before you. That's not supposed to work. It doesn't work that way. Right?"Anticipated," maybe, but "remembered?" How? Well, if you credit the possibility of multiple beginnings, that's how. Okay. I'm saying that your best stuff, your best thoughts, not the most noble necessarily. I would mean the most timely, [01:22:00] the ones that seem most needed, suddenly.You could take credit and sure. Why, why not? Because ostensibly, it arrives here through you, but if you're frank with yourself, you know that you didn't do that on command, right? I mean, you could say, I just thought of it, but you know in your heart that it was thought of and came to you.I don't think there's any difference between saying that and saying you were thought of.Audience: Mm-hmm.Stephen: So, that's what I think the rudiments of old-order matrimony are. They are old people and their benefactors in the food chain and spiritually speaking. Old people and their benefactors, the best part of them [01:23:00] willed to us, entrusted and willed to us. So, when you are willing to enter into the notion that old-order matrimony is older than you, older than your feelings for the other person, older than your love, and your commitment, and your willingness to make the vows and all that stuff, then you're crediting the possibility that your love is not the beginning of anything.You see. Your love is the advent of something, and I use that word deliberately in its Christian notion, right? It's the oncomingness, the eruption into the present day of something, which turns out to be hugely needed and deeply unsuspected at the same time.I used to ask in the school, "can you [01:24:00] have a memory of something you have no lived experience of?" I think that's what the best part of you is. I'm not saying the rest of you is shite. I'm not saying that. You could say that, but I am saying that when I say "the best part of you," that needs a lot of translating, doesn't it?But the gist of it is that the best part of you is entrusted to you. It's not your creation, it's your burden, your obligation, your best chance to get it right. And that's who we are to those who came before us. We are their chance to get it right, and matrimony is one of the places where you practice the gentle art of getting it right.[01:25:00] Another decent reason to write a book.Chris: So, gorgeous. Wow. Thank you Stephen. I might have one more question.Stephen: Okay. I might have one more answer. Let's see.Chris: Alright. Would I be able to ask if dear Nathalie Roy could join us up here alongside your good man.So, returning to Matrimony: Ritual, Culture and the Heart's Work. On page 94, [01:26:00] Stephen, you write that"hospitality of the radical kind is

“O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.” (2 Chronicles 20:12 NLT) Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, was in trouble. The armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir had joined forces to attack their common enemy, Judah. Military strategy, no matter how brilliant or daring, would not be able to overcome the size differential of the fighting forces. The armies that were descending on Judah had the potential to annihilate. King Jehoshaphat recognized that this was no time for false bravado. All he could do was pray and trust in God’s mercy and strength. In 2 Chronicles 20, we find him standing with his men, along with their families and children, praying, “O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help” (verse 12 NLT). God’s answer came through Jahaziel, one of the men standing with the king. “This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s” (verse 15 NLT). I love that scene. Humanly speaking, it is a picture of weakness. King Jehoshaphat was saying, in effect, “Lord, here we are. We have the kids. We have an army coming toward us. What am I going to do here? Our eyes are on You.” That is a good thing to pray. God answered Jehoshaphat’s prayer, intervened, and rescued the people of Judah. In the New Testament, we read of a time when there was a storm at sea, and the disciples were calling out to God for help. Jesus finally showed up, walking toward them on the water. He had arrived during the fourth watch of the night, which is the last part of the night, right before the sun begins to rise. Technically, it’s the morning, but it still feels like it’s night. This means the disciples had been toiling at sea for hours, trying to get through that storm, and Jesus came along at the last possible moment. The point is that He did come to them. And He will do the same for you and me. He always will—when the time is right. We need to just trust Him. God’s reckoning of time is much more accurate than ours is. He is eternal. He can see past, present, and future with perfect clarity. He knows the ripple effect of every action. He also knows how to bring good from any situation. He is the perfect Consultant—One who wants only the best for us and knows when and how that best can be achieved. Remember this: He loves us with an everlasting love. That love is not fickle. That love doesn’t change. That love is persistent. That love is consistent. We are loved by God. Reflection question: When have you experienced God’s amazing timing? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship! — The audio production of the podcast "Daily Devotions from Greg Laurie" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie. Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast Become a Harvest PartnerSupport the show: https://harvest.org/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on Bold Steps Minute, Pastor Mark reminds you that your faith connects you to God's supernatural power. He' not limited by science, logic, or what makes sense to the world.Become a Bold Partner Today: https://give.moodyradio.org/bsj?appeal=podcast&utm_source=bsm_podcast&utm_medium=description&utm_term=radioSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.””‭‭Matthew‬ ‭19‬:‭26‬ ‭NLT‬‬“But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.””‭‭John‬ ‭2‬:‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬1 Corinthians 6:17 New International VersionBut whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

Episode Synopsis:2 Corinthians just may well be the most difficult of all of Paul's letters.  2 Corinthians assumes that the reader has a basic understanding of the geography of the Greco-Roman world (a map really helps), as well as some understanding of the ongoing situation in the Corinthian church which leads Paul to compose this letter (the fourth in a series of letters which Paul has sent to the church in Corinth).  To get the most out of this letter, you need to get up to speed with its background and purpose. But don't let this keep you from taking the time to dig in with us was we strive to get to the heart of the letter, which is filled with meaty theology and practical application.  Paul's reason for writing amounts to a defense of his ministry and apostolic office.  We learn a great deal about Paul as a person and the history of his Gentile mission in 2 Corinthians.  As he prepares to return to Corinth, Paul explains his actions and motives including revealing his secret weapon–he is strongest when he is weak, because then he can do nothing else but count upon the mercy of God and the power of the gospel.  Humanly speaking, Paul has much to boast about but he directs his readers back to the proper reason for boasting–to give God the glory and honor he alone deserves.  We'll also find in 2 Corinthians more of Paul's robust Trinitarian theology.  In 2 Corinthians 13:14, Paul offers one of the most definitive Trinitarian declarations in all the New Testament.  “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”  Paul does much to explain the saving work of Jesus Christ in reconciling sinners unto the Father, as well as discussing the Holy Spirit's role in God's redemptive purposes.  Paul is also clear about fallen human nature.  We are as fragile as jars of clay and our bodies are mere tents until we are made alive by the Father, through the Son, and in the Spirit.  There is much in 2 Corinthians about the glory of the new covenant, and the fading glory of the old, as Paul gives the Corinthians yet another lesson in understanding the course of redemptive history.In the closing chapters, Paul lowers the boom on those whom he calls “false” apostles, men who are doing the devil's work through teaching another Jesus and another gospel.  He also identifies men he calls “super” apostles whose eloquent speech and style are vastly superior to Paul, and may have some sort of charismatic ministry, which they used not to glorify God, but to undermine Paul and drive a wedge between the apostle and the saints in Corinth.  Paul will have none of it.So even though 2 Corinthians can be tough going at first, it is very well worth our time and study.For show notes and other recommended materials located at the Riddleblog as mentioned during the Blessed Hope Podcast, click here: https://www.kimriddlebarger.com/

Ever feel that everything is against you? We wonder if Paul was ever inclined to feel that way? Remember how he writes of his “countless beatings … many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food …” [2 Cor.11 v.23,27] In view of such experiences, let us take special notice of his testimony that we read today in his letter to the Romans, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him, graciously give us all things? [8 v.31,32]Humanly speaking many things were “against” Paul, but his mind and heart were absolutely committed to his relationship with Christ: this is evident as he states that Christ “is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? … in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, not things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” [8 v.34,35,37-39]How much do our brethren in some countries of the world today need this spirit that Paul writes about! And tomorrow? Let us, with Christ's help, because we have become fully committed to him, become “ more than conquerors” for “who can be against us?”The answer is no one can succeed in destroying our faith as long as we really “hear” in our hearts the words of Jesus. , “Hold fast what you have” Jesus told those in Philadelphia, “I know you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name …I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” [Rev. 3 v.8, 10,11] , The hour of trial that came then, as with other ‘hours' to subsequent generations all foreshadowed an ultimate “hour of trial” of which we read last week in Matthew (ch. 24) Let us “Hold fast” for nothing can succeed “against us” “if God be for us.”

In this episode, we welcome Prem Kumar, the CEO and co-founder of Humanly, an AI-powered hiring platform. We discuss how AI is reshaping the world of recruiting by improving speed, enhancing the candidate experience, and allowing for greater scalability without losing the essential human touch. Prem also discusses the importance of building trust with candidates through empathetic AI interactions, and provides real-world examples of how companies are using these new tools to make their hiring processes more efficient and effective. [0:00] Introduction Welcome, Prem! Today's Topic: How AI is Reshaping Recruiting [8:31] How is AI helping recruiters balance speed and candidate experience? AI can make bad processes happen faster just as easily as it can good ones; it's not a replacement for a sound strategy. The role of the recruiter will evolve into one of orchestration, strategically deciding where to implement AI in the hiring workflow. [16:10] How can you build an AI that earns candidate trust? Earning trust is about providing immediate value and setting clear expectations. The goal is not to trick a candidate into thinking an AI is human, but to be transparent about its role in assisting them. [24:57] What are some real-world examples of AI improving hiring efficiency? For AI to be effective, it must be integrated directly into a company's primary workflow, such as its Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Chat agents are now handling candidate intake, answering questions, and initial screening. Companies are using AI to re-engage with the vast pools of candidates they already have in their databases. [35:23] Closing Thanks for listening! Quick Quote “AI, like any technology, has the ability to make this happen faster, more efficiently, and at a higher quality; but it also has the ability to make bad things happen faster, more efficiently bad, and at a higher quality of bad. It isn't a way of getting around sound process.”

While they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.” — Matthew 26:21 The patience and generosity Jesus shows as he prepares for his last supper with his disciples is really awe inspiring. Without anger or malice he tells the truth of what is about to happen. He not only sets a table in front of an enemy but also serves that enemy. This too is amazing grace. The good shepherd feeds his sheep both physically and spiritually with a meal (the Lord's Supper) that the flock will eat in remembrance of his sacrifice and love for years and years to come. It will nourish them spiritually so that they will have what they need to stay on mission. And even in underground churches to the present day his sheep have joined in this meal despite being surrounded by enemies. Humanly speaking it would not have been easy to think about the sheep in his care as Jesus set his face toward the cross and he became the sacrifice for sin for the sake of all who would follow him. But while Jesus was fully human, he was also fully the Son of God who continued to care for his flock even as he faced death on their behalf. Here we see his overwhelming love for both the Father and the flock, including any who opposed him. We are called to live and act like Jesus. How does his example of showing love to both his faithful followers and his enemies inform how we can engage with people who are unkind to us? We praise you, Lord Jesus, for your undying love shown to us in so many ways as you walked toward your death for our sake. Amen.

In this episode of the Shift AI Podcast, Boaz welcomes Prem Kumar, CEO of Humanly and GeekWire Award winner for CEO of the Year. With his unique background as both a buyer of HR solutions at Microsoft and a startup leader at TINYpulse, Prem shares how his company is revolutionizing the hiring process through AI-powered solutions that create more human-centered experiences.Prem dives into the challenges facing today's job seekers and recruiters, revealing how Humanly's technology enables meaningful two-way conversations for every candidate within 24 hours of application. The discussion explores how AI can reduce bias in hiring, improve standardization in interviews, and ultimately create better matches between candidates and companies. Whether you're interested in the future of recruiting or navigating today's job market, Prem's "human first" approach to AI offers valuable insights on how technology can enhance rather than replace meaningful human connections.Chapters:[00:00] The Philosophy of Human-Centered AI[01:39] Professional Journey: Microsoft to Startup Leadership[04:22] Addressing Recruitment Inefficiencies[06:35] Humanly's Approach to Streamlining Candidate Experience[08:42] Combating Algorithmic Bias in Hiring Processes[11:29] Strategic Job Application Techniques for Modern Candidates[13:13] Next-Generation Recruitment: Personalized Job Matching[16:10] Building Trust Through Transparent AI Implementation[20:49] The Evolution of Workforce Management[25:19] Influential Mentors and Iterative Culture Development[26:43] Prioritizing Human Outcomes in AI DevelopmentConnect with Prem KumarLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/premskumar/ Website: https://www.humanly.ioEmail: prem@humanly.io Connect with Boaz AshkenazyLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boazashkenazy X:https://x.com/boazashkenazyEmail: shift@augmentedailabs.comThe Shift AI Podcast is syndicated by GeekWire, and we are grateful to have the show sponsored by Augmented AI Labs.  Our theme music was created by Dave Angel  Follow, Listen, and SubscribeSpotify | Apple Podcast | Youtube

12 core reasons why you can trust that the Bible is God'sWord to us. Do you know these 12? Memorize these because you can use them toshare the gospel with unbelievers and doubters. Reason #2 of 12.the Bible's truth is supported by the fact that about 40 different people wrote it:Remarkable unity: Despite 40 different authors from vastly different walks of life, the Bible maintains a single, consistent message about God's plan of salvation.No contradictions in core themes: Across centuries and cultures, these writers harmonized on key truths about God's character, humanity's sin, and redemption through Christ.Humanly impossible coordination: It would be impossible for 40 people over 1,500 years to coordinate such a unified story without divine guidance.Eyewitness testimony: Many authors personally witnessed the events they recorded, adding credibility.Prophetic consistency: Different authors prophesied things hundreds of years apart that came true later, showing a divine hand orchestrating it all.Historical accuracy: These varied writers recorded details verified by archaeology and secular history, reinforcing their reliability.

JoséI am sitting on the cracked, faux black leather couch in a white beam of LED light. Underneath the sparkling sheath of my green-blue dress is my matching tangerine orange underwear set. José is crouched on his knees on the floor in front of me.I notice the way he sees me. His drunken eyes double-take as I open my legs. I look down over the lip of my dress and back up into his brown eyes, teasing. I want to control him. It's like I've made up a game with my own body. I will spruce up these used goods. Put the fruit back on the shelf at the supermarket, nice and ripe again.I touch myself over my underwear as I look up at him. I am putting on a show for him. I quite like it. I feel powerful, in control. I notice the grey hairs in the scruff of his beard as he sips his beer. He leans in closer, tasting me with his nose.When we are f*****g in his room, the breath is forced out of my lungs by the weight of his body and his protruding belly. He has cute brown moles on his face, deep brown eyes, and a wicked smile. Eight years older than me. He comes quickly. I feel dainty, young, fresh.José drives me home at 3 in the morning. In his car, I hug my knees, my orange underwear back on but readjusted and slightly twisted. He winks at me, and I pause for a moment. I wonder. We can both look at my body, but perhaps we see very different things. How does he see me? As some kind of walking beauty? Humanly imperfect yet highly f******e?Come back for more

Trey Edward Shults https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4099092/ has been called a visionary film director. Matt and Oren chat with Trey about his bold leap into auteur filmmaking—what it means to claim that title and how he made it happen.What did he learn as a nineteen-year-old loading IMAX film for Terrence Malick on the edge of a live volcano? And is going to Cannes or winning at SXSW really enough to eventually land Hollywood's most sought-after actors for your film?His latest film, "Hurry Up Tomorrow" (@hurryuptomorrowmovie on Instagram), opens Friday, is a collaboration with The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye), and stars Jenna Ortega.---Matt's Endorsement: Breaking and Entering on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/company/breakingandentering/posts/?feedView=all It's basically "Everything You Need to Know in Advertising in 60 Seconds."Oren's Endorsement: Amazing AI art that defies the horrifically bad tells of AI art. Humanly artistic and possessing a sense of authorship and voice. @voidstomper on Instagram. He has millions of followers, but hasn't figured out how to monetize it. So help him out and watch his new videos.Trey' Endorsements: Chicken Joe's aka CJ's in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g635538-d2041184-Reviews-Chicken_Joe_s-Santa_Teresa_Province_of_Puntarenas.html Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eightfold announced how agentic AI is enabling the paradigm shift from talent intelligence to talent advantage, enabling workforce productivity—autonomously, continuously, and at scale.  https://hrtechfeed.com/eightfold-announces-agentic-ai-features/ Greenhouse, the hiring platform,announced at the UNLEASH Conference a slate of new products of built-in AI tools to help companies save time on tedious tasks and focus on strategic hiring. With features designed to quickly identify top talent, design compelling job boards and job descriptions, and accelerate hiring time, organizations can competitively hire and stay ahead of rising application volumes. https://hrtechfeed.com/greenhouse-unveils-new-ai-driven-products/  Humanly has raised a $7 million momentum round to fuel rapid growth and advance our mission of redefining how employers connect with talent. By leading the way in Conversational AI recruiting, we're helping our customers interview all candidates and build more inclusive, efficient hiring processes. https://hrtechfeed.com/humanly-raises-7m-for-its-screening-scheduling-software/ Milan, ITALY — Today, Skillvue announces a $6.3 million funding round to transform how companies identify, measure, and develop skills across both candidates and employees. As the job market faces unprecedented disruption—with 59% of workers needing reskilling by 2030—Skillvue's AI-powered platform is evolving from a recruitment tool into a comprehensive Skills Assessment Agents system that breaks down traditional job structures to reveal the capabilities and potential that truly drive performance. https://hrtechfeed.com/skillvue-raises-6-3m-to-transform-how-companies-discover-and-develop-hidden-talent/ Appcast,announced the launch of Appcast Search Ads, the recruitment industry's first programmatic search solution.  "While the job board channel remains a critical channel for fulfilling hiring needs, it simply cannot meet every employer's hard-to-fill needs – Appcast Search Ads closes that gap," said Kelsey Krater, chief platform officer at Appcast. "Without the right strategy and the right technology to scale that strategy, it becomes very difficult to achieve optimal performance and demonstrate ROI. Appcast Search Ads eliminates risk and uncertainty because it ties actions to outcomes and is fueled by continuous, conversion-focused optimization."   

White Sox better trade Luis Robert Jr. as soon as humanly possible full 589 Tue, 25 Mar 2025 22:21:06 +0000 sDcvl2ltgAolwI2izoQN8Kr0GBCb3vQE mlb,chicago white sox,sports Spiegel & Holmes Show mlb,chicago white sox,sports White Sox better trade Luis Robert Jr. as soon as humanly possible Matt Spiegel and Laurence Holmes bring you Chicago sports talk with great opinions, guests and fun. Join Spiegel and Holmes as they discuss the Bears, Blackhawks, Bulls, Cubs and White Sox and delve into the biggest sports storylines of the day. Recurring guests include Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson, former Bears coach Dave Wannstedt, former Bears center Olin Kreutz, Cubs manager Craig Counsell, Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner and MLB Network personality Jon Morosi. Catch the show live Monday through Friday (2 p.m. - 6 p.m. CT) on 670 The Score, the exclusive audio home of the Cubs and the Bulls, or on the Audacy app. 2024 © 2021 Audacy, Inc. Sports False https://player.amperwavepo

Can we “flatter” God?  Human flattery emerges out of unhealthy attitudes of mind to achieve a fleshly purpose!  There are many meaningful lessons to be gleaned from today's Psalm 78.  It surveys the whole history of God's nation and the good – and not so good – indeed the bad – in their relationship with their God.  What is a relationship with God? That's a question we each need to answer.The Psalmist draws most of his lessons from their experiences in the wilderness under Moses.  Overwhelming evidence had been given to the people – in the way of visual experiences of God in action.  Jesus said, “Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required ….” [Luke 12 v.48]Up to verse 16 the Psalmist makes a summary of the physical evidence they had witnessed of their God in action; of the plagues in Egypt and their exemption from all but the first three; the dramatic Passover night, the drama afterwards and the parting of the waters so they crossed on dry land and then witnessed the drowning of the Egyptians. Then came the provision of water and now, says the Psalmist, “the bread of angels … in abundance” [v.25] and “winged birds … and they ate and were well filled” [v.27,29]At this point “the anger of God rose against them … they sought him; they repented and sought God earnestly” [v.31, 34]  But what is their frame of mind as they express repentance and are seeking God?  Were they motivated by a sense of love for God? Now to love someone in a genuine way one needs to be in a heartfelt and abiding relationship with them, so what was now the nature of their attitude toward God?Verses 36 & 37 tell us, “They flattered him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues.  Their heart was not steadfast toward him; they were not faithful to his covenant.”   So what did God do as a result?  Humanly, we would have expected a rejection of them – or at least some form of punishment. But no!  The next verse says, “Yet he, being compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them; he restrained his anger often …”This is the message in the New Testament – to those in the wilderness of this world.  God's all-seeing spirit surrounds us – as it did them in the wilderness.  Paul told the Ephesians to “put off your old self … (it) is corrupt through deceitful desires ..” [4 v.22]  Deceitful desires among other things use flattery to achieve deceitful purposes.  Paul next says, “and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God …  in true righteousness and holiness.”  What challenging thoughts this provokes in our minds.  In what way can our “new self” be “in the likeness of God?”   This requires the deepest meditation – and the most earnest prayer.

Seeing God Through the Lens of Materialism Matthew 19:16-30 Someone came to Jesus with this question: Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life? Why ask me about what is good? Jesus replied. There is only One who is good.But to answer your questionif you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments. Which ones? the man asked. And Jesus replied: You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honour your father and mother. Love your neighbour as yourself. Ive obeyed all these commandments, the young man replied. What else must I do? Jesus told him, If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Then Jesus said to his disciples, I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 24 Ill say it againit is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God! The disciples were astounded. Then who in the world can be saved? they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.Then Peter said to him, Weve given up everything to follow you. What will we get? Jesus replied, I assure you that when the world is made new and the Son of Man sits upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life. But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then. We Will Be Taken Care Of, But Suffering Is A Guarantee John 16:33 Romans 8:35-37 Suffering Is Redeemable Romans 5:1-5 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Worldly Blessings Are Overrated Matthew 6:19-21 Matthew 6:24 Matthew 13:44 Mark 8:34-37

Well hey there and hello again to ya. Welcome back to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show.  Created for You Freebies at JanLBurt.com The Power of God's Will - 40 Days of God's Promises Devotional on Amazon Let's go ahead and get started. God's got good for you, and I am hopeful that this episode will remind you of that, no matter what kind of stuff life is throwing at you today.   You're listening to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show podcast, blessed to be part of the ministry of the Edifi app. That's EDIFI, and you can find it in your app store. And if the show blesses or encourages you, I'd like to formally invite you to subscribe. This is episode number 203. Today I am going to read a bunch of Bible verses to you and let the promises of God sink into your heart and also into your mind (because when the word of God gets into our mind, it literally  changes the way that we think and that, my friend, changes the way that we live). And I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to prepare you right now, before I even quote one single verse, to ready you and prepare you to believe His amazing promises to you so that you can live from here on out like they are taking place, being accomplished, in your life. Live like His promises to you are true.   Because they are! God keeps all of His promises so I want to encourage you today to live like you know He is keeping all of His promises to you. To your family. And to His people all over the world.    Okay, so let's dive into God's Word and get some encouraging news in our ears, and into our thoughts, shall we?    First let's start with some powerful and hopeful words that Jesus spoke. I am quoting the NLT for today's podcast & let's look at Mark 12:27 - Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.”    Okay - this is where we are going to begin. It is so, so important to remember, when we are making the big bold decision to really, truly believe God's promises - to live a believing life - that we don't base our belief on anything other than the Lord. We don't search out something in addition to Him in order to increase our faith. We aren't mustering up more faith by trying to make ourselves have more faith. Rather, we are relying fully on Him. And we are simply deciding that we will believe what the Bible says to us. And so, this verse is just a great reminder that you don't have to make God's promises work out in your life, in your kid's lives, etc. Nope. The pressure isn't on you to make happen what God has promised. But so often we live as if the pressure is on us, somehow, to do what is impossible for us. Only God is God, and only He can keep the promises He makes. Now only you can live by faith, believing God. But you and I have no ability or power to make it happen. We cannot get it done. But what we can get done is choose to believe Him, to take Him at His word, and to abide in Him moment by moment, even while we are expecting to see His promises fulfilled.    There are actually many, many things in this life that are impossible - for mankind. For humans. For wives and for moms and for employees and so on. Humanly speaking, there is gonna be stuff that is just not possible. But not with God! Aren't these words from Jesus incredible?  Think for just a moment about what our Savior is actually saying to us. But not with God. EVERYTHING is possible with God.   So bring God into everything, then! Never intentionally leave Him out of anything. You want the God who turns the impossible into the possible  - you want that God doing all the things in your life, right?    Get a sense of Jesus, today, looking at you intently and reminding you, firmly but with great love and compassion, that it isn't about mankind's ability to make this thing fly. Because  is is God and God alone who makes everything possible.    Psalm 37:23 (NLT) says this - The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.   Okay, this is a great verse! What hope it provides! What assurance! This is quite a promise! He is promising that He will direct your steps. And guess what? You can pray this verse over your loved ones, your co-workers, your spouse, your aging parents, your neighbors. And also, pray this over yourself.    Lord, please do as You have said in Your word and direct my steps. Lord, delight in every detail of my life.   Lord, direct my steps. I know my righteousness and any godliness within me is thanks to Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit. So Father, bless me and direct each step that I take. Stop me when I am near a misstep. Thank You for this promise of Your guidance and direction over my life, from now until my last breath.    It says that He delights in every detail of our lives. So guess what that means for us? How does that relate to us living in total belief that God's promises for us are absolutely true and are being realized on the daily? Well, take every little and every big detail of your life to God in prayer. You can do that! You should do that! He cares so much - talk to Him.Talk to Him often. Like, talk to God a lot! All of the time. And remember, and keep on remembering, He delights, not tolerates or endures or notices, but delights in every detail of your life. You are not just barely tolerable. No, to the contrary, you are one in whom God takes great delight.    Oh this is a great promise. And a great prayer verse too. Quick side note here - anybody else feel kind of like we need to ramp up our praying? Just have that sense that we need to spend more time talking to the Lord, time in prayer by ourselves and maybe with others, too.  If you feel that way too, listen to the Lord as to what He is calling you to. And keep track of, write down, memorize, put in your phone verses that you can have at the ready at any moment to pray.That's just a little tip that comes in handy, having some verses saved to a note on your phone so that you can open it and start praying those verses at any time, it can be helpful to have that at hand. And maybe open that note and pray those verses rather than scroll when you have ten minutes to spare. Just a thought!  Praying God's promises is really amazing. Like, this will leave you amazed again and again. So, that's my side note. Just keep seeking to be part of whatever He is doing, where He is moving. And hey, prayer is always always a good thing, is it not?    (And maybe take a look at what it says in Habakkuk 2:3 - that is an awesome verse to start a prayer time with. I encourage you to look it up but I will read it to you from the Amplified right now - For the vision is yet for the appointed (future) time; it hurries toward the goal (or fulfillment); it will not fail. Even though it delays, wati (patiently) for it, because it will certainly come; it will not delay.)  He is always moving, and even when it seems like there is a delay, which there is at times according to the verse I just read from Habakkuk, don't lose heart. Hang your hope on the Lord who always does as He has promised, and don't unhang your hope when the wait gets long.    Okay, so this next verse is one that I think some people might feel like they just cannot seem to fully believe for themselves. Like, this isn't going to be true for me. If you've ever thought like that, let me encourage you. I am hopeful that you and I can today believe this verse for our very own situations.   Deuteronomy 31:6 (NLT) says - So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.   A lot in that verse. First, God says to be strong and courageous and that sentence ends with an exclamation point. Now there weren't exactly punctuation marks in the original Hebrew, right? But the translation into modern English gives us the exclamation point so that we grasp God's meaning in this verse. The punctuation reminds us of the importance - it's to garner our attention, to make sure we're listening and reading what God has said in His word.  So - let's just do what He says to do! Be strong. Be courageous. Exclamation point. I am guessing you have one or more parts of your life right now, at this point in time, where you can apply this. So go ahead and apply it. Be strong. Be courageous. How? By resting in the Lord and knowing that He is going to keep His word.    Don't be afraid. Think on Jesus and the fear dissipates, really it does! Do not panic before them, it says. Well “them” of course refers to their enemies. Don't panic before your enemy.    And here is the reason why you don't need to be afraid, don't panic, but instead be strong and courageous. For the Lord your God WILL PERSONALLY go ahead of you.  This is profound to think about, and yet it is absolutely true.    When God says He WILL do something, He most assuredly will. You just be about the business of believing He will do all He has promised to do. Let Him be about the actual doing of it.    He will personally go ahead of you. How's that for a promise that can give you some big time faith?    And the verse ends with this - He will neither fail you nor abandon you. I'm going to say that once more - He will neither fail you nor abandon you.  He won't. That's that.   I've got a couple more verses to share with you today. And I am believing they are encouraging to you and will have you just believing by the end of this episode. If not, hey, you can listen again. Let that faith grow in you and believe more and more every single day - trust God more than the news, more than fear, more than anything. Right?   Revelation 21:4 (NLT)  - He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying of pain. All these things are gone forever.   This is such a wonderful verse for us. I'm not going to mention anything specific today - but we are living in a very tumultuous era. I'm going to say this about our current season in the history of the world: I believe we are living in the end times, the last days. And I say that based on what the Bible teaches us about how things will look in the end times. Now, many Christians will say that we have fifty or a hundred years until Jesus' return. I don't think that is possible, because it does not make sense based on what the Bible tells us the last days will be like. Let me explain what I mean - we know that in the last days no one will be able to buy or sell unless they take the mark of the beast, the mark on their hand and/or forehead. You've heard this before, I'm pretty sure. You can read about it in Revelation chapter 13, I think verses 16 through 18 specifically. A hundred years ago, was there a way for a mark to be put in your hand or in your forehead that would prevent you from buying or selling? Well, not really. How about fifty years ago? Not really. The answer is, no. It wasn't possible. How about even 25 years ago? Back in 2000? Getting closer, but the tech wasn't quite there.   So here's some food for thought. If fifty, a hundred, or even just twenty five years ago the tech wasn't ready for the mark of the beast to be implemented, and then if we just ponder the last five years or so, the changes in the tech world. It's astounding how much has changed in a handful of years. So, at the pace technology is changing and advancing, and I can tell you in my limited experience with just the podcast industry and social media, it changes so fast, a month ago things were different with some of the apps and things I use. It's quick change after quick change, all day long, right? So how does that work if we have fifty or a hundred years yet to go? Won't the tech outpace the end times at this rate? Like, we cannot fathom what technology will be capable of in fifty or a hundred years. But right now, we can fathom the mark of the beast for buying or selling, and the tech, it would work. We're right on the cusp of this being a possible and plausible reality. Since this is what we were forewarned of by Jesus Himself in the book of Revelation, is it wise to tell ourselves or to preach to others that we've got decades of quote/unquote safe time before it all happens as the Bible says? Or is it far wiser to say, hey, per the words of Jesus, we're just about to this point technology wise. It's coming, and it's not going to be in five or ten decades…because at that point, the tech would have outpaced the very word of God, the prophetic aspects of the end times, and that, we know, cannot and will not happen.    So today, this moment, is the time for you to consider Revelation 21 verse 4. Let me read it once more. Revelation 21:4 (NLT)  - He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying of pain. All these things are gone forever.   This verse is a balm for those who know Jesus. It's key. It's mission critical to remember there is a day coming when all the tears will stop. And that day is nearly here. No more death or sorrow or crying or pain. Gone forever. I don't even need to say more about this verse, this promise from Revelation, except that it is for those who know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. If you don't, you are welcome to email me at JanLBurt@outlook.com and I will reply. It's so important to know Him, not know of Him, not just attend church, but really know Him. Not talking religion here. But true relationship with the Son of God, Jesus. I really do welcome you to contact me. Totally confidential and non judgmental. Just offering Jesus and how to have Him as your best friend forever.    Last verse today - Luke 1:37 (NLT) For the word of God will never fail.   Short and sweet. Doesn't need explaining. No need for commentary. Just know that this is absolute and unchanging truth.    For the word of the Lord will never fail.   Anybody else need to know that today?   Take that thing, big and scary, and hold it up next to this verse, Luke 1:37. Does one seem bigger and one much smaller?    For the word of the Lord will - never - fail.   It won't. It just flat out will not fail. Never, no never.   Lord bless you today. I have prayed for you, all who listen to this episode, and I am going to continue to pray for you.    Live a life sold out for Jesus, believing all of His promises, and just see what God might do in and through a life lived like that.    Find me via my website JanLBurt.com and grab any one of the free items I've got on the home page-  and I have a book, a devotional, available on Amazon - The Power of God's Will - 40 Days of God's Promises - with verses that have the word “WILL” in them. God does what He says He will do, and He never doesn't do what He has said that He will do.   Have a great day & I will see ya back here next time. Be sure to subscribe to not miss future episodes. Thankful you joined me & blessed to be able to stand by faith on the promises in God's Word.   Bye bye! 

For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body (Colossians 2:9). Glory, hallelujah!

Everyone has doubted themselves at some point in time.   The most infamous doubter of all time (in the bible) was Thomas - You can read this section in John 20:24-29.   Peter climbed out of the boat and walked on the water until reality set in, and he started to doubt. You can read this in Matthew 14:29-31.   We want to believe so badly that we can be good leaders, and that we can do the right thing, which includes dealing with difficult people, speaking up in certain circumstances, and handling those battles we often just avoid because we'd rather just confrontations altogether.   But as soon as a situation arises, we doubt ourselves, our abilities, our knowledge, our experience and we believe we're just not good enough, or I can't do this!   Sometimes we forget just how unqualified ALL the disciples were. But Jesus chose them anyway, because HE knew, he knew their potential, he knew that he wanted imperfect people to lead. He is NOT looking for you to be perfect! Not by any means!   All he wants is for you to trust him, have confidence that HE put you in that position, have confidence every day that He loves you and all that He wants is just for you to be an instrument.   So, when self-doubt kicks in, why not memorise a verse that will give you courage, that will remind you that God is with you right now and that YOU CAN DO HARD THINGS because He is with you!   Matthew 19:26 reads: "Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”   Here are 5 bible verses that will help and encourage you to overcome your self-doubt with the knowledge that God knew that you were going to doubt one day, he already knew and therefore he already made provision, and He already overcame it for YOU!   1. Joshua 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."   2. Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."   3. Isaiah 41:10 "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."   4. Isaiah 41:13 "For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you."   5. Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."   BONUS: Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."   I pray that this encourages you today!   Know that HE is Lord and that HE's got you!   Have a listener question? Submit it at https://www.womenoffaithinleadership.com   Next steps:  1. Navigate to https://www.womenoffaithinleadership.com where you can: Join the community of like-minded female Christian leaders. This is where I will be hanging out if I'm not on the podcast chatting to you all. Come share and support each other here.  Subscribe to my newsletter so you can stay up to date with all upcoming episodes and any other exclusive or special offers. 2. If you need any support, you can get in contact with me for a 1:1 coaching session. Just email me at support@rikawhelan.com 3. Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rikawhelan

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Chaya Mistry, the founder of Humanly, a leadership and communication consultancy who describes herself as a "human whisperer," reflects on her upbringing in a multicultural family in the UK, shaped by her Indian heritage, and how this foundation inspired her mission to regenerate human connections. With a background in psychology and corporate communications, Chaya shares her journey of founding Humanly, a consultancy that emphasizes emotional intelligence, leadership coaching, and creating spaces where people can connect authentically, both in work and life. She highlights the transformative power of compassion and deep listening as acts of kindness with the potential to create profound ripple effects.   Central to the conversation is Chaya's framework for transformational leadership, built around the Four Cs: Compassion, Curiosity, Courage, and Creativity. She and Maurice delve into the importance of inner work in leadership, exploring how these qualities align with the Inner Development Goals (IDGs) and their complement to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Chaya emphasizes the need for leaders to cultivate self-awareness and self-care as tools for fostering deeper connections and driving meaningful change. Drawing from her work, she illustrates how authentic leadership can inspire both personal growth and social transformation, creating a foundation for collaborative action in addressing global challenges.   Listener Engagement: Discover more about Chaya Mistry, via her website or LinkedIn. Join her online community: The Human Leadership Collective or read her latest blog Share your thoughts on this episode at innovationhub@cwsglobal.org. Your feedback is invaluable to us. Explore the songs selected by Chaya and other guests on our #walktalklisten playlist here. Follow Us: Support the Walk Talk Listen podcast and Maurice by liking and following Maurice on Blue Sky, Facebook and Instagram. Visit our website at 100mile.org for more episodes and information about our initiatives. Check out the special WTL series "Enough for All," featuring Church World Service (CWS) and the work of the Joint Learning Initiative (JLI).

The circumstances of Jesus' birth tell us about how God sees life. Humanly devised systems of status, power, and wealth mean nothing to God. So we should ask, why do they mean so much to us? God has a plan for you... salvation from death... resurrection... placement within His family... participation in the universal rule of God. And, it is not based on your material achievements, status, or wealth. A better picture of God's life priorities is found in Jesus' birth in the flesh. Nobody in this world, but set apart, to serve God's purpose, to give Himself as a sacrifice to God, and to rise up to everlasting life. With that in mind, let's review the birth of Jesus and consider the different reactions it produced in those who were on the scene. Link to article referred to in the video Was There Really "No Room in the Inn"? https://www.ucg.org/the-good-news/was-there-really-no-room-in-the-inn Photos by Unknown author is licensed under CC BY-NC.​ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

We really hope you are enjoying this week and the amazing story of Joseph. God had given him a strange, mystical gift of being ability to hear someone's crazy-sounding dream and be able to offer a credible interpretation that applied to the person's future. And would most certainly come true. After Pharaoh had a very strange dream and no one could tell him what it meant, he was finally made aware of Joseph and called him before the throne to hear the dream, this is in Genesis 41:15 “I dreamed a dream,” Pharaoh told Joseph. “Nobody can interpret it. But I've heard that just by hearing a dream you can interpret it.”  Joseph answered, “Not I, but God. God will set Pharaoh's mind at ease.” When the dust had settled after Joseph heard, interpreted, and offered solutions for all of Pharaoh's dreams, the ruler of Egypt made a surprising declaration to everyone, but most especially to Joseph: We pick up in verse 38 Then Pharaoh said to his officials, “Isn't this the man we need? Are we going to find anyone else who has God's spirit in him like this?” So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “You're the man for us. God has given you the inside story—no one is as qualified as you in experience and wisdom. From now on, you're in charge of my affairs; all my people will report to you. Only as king will I be over you.” Every problem that humans threw at Joseph, God always in time provided a promotion for him. Ultimately, he became the second most powerful leader in the known world. This story is much like when Jesus told the disciples in Matthew 19:26: “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” God can overcome anything if we will simply place the circumstance in His hands. The handing-over can be very hard sometimes, because we feel out-of-control. But giving control of something we cannot control anyway to the God who is always in control will be the best decisions we make—every time. Like Joseph told Pharaoh: “It is beyond my power to do this, but God can …” Is there an impossible situation in your life right now that you can turn over to God? Let's pray: “Father, thank You that whatever happens, You can. What is impossible for me is always possible for You. What seems impossible to happen or not happen, You have control over. I submit my life, my purpose, my own need to be in control to You. As above, so below.”

Summary In this episode of AI Tool Report Live, host Liam Lawson interviews Prem Kumar, CEO of Humanly.io, a leading conversational platform for high-volume hiring. They discuss Prem's journey from his first job to becoming a successful entrepreneur, the importance of candidate experience in recruitment, and how Humanly blends automation with a human touch. Prem shares insights on building an inclusive company culture, the role of AI in recruitment, and the challenges of scaling a startup. He emphasizes the importance of mentorship, technical curiosity, and the need for aspiring entrepreneurs to take action and get started. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Prem Kumar and Humanly.io 02:36 Prem's Early Career and Entrepreneurial Journey 05:42 The Genesis of Humanly and Candidate Experience 08:32 Balancing Automation and Human Touch in Recruiting 11:08 Insights from Behavioral Science in Recruitment 13:53 Benefits of Humanly for Recruiting Firms 15:42 AI Infrastructure and Bias Mitigation 19:19 Building an Inclusive Company Culture 21:46 Challenges of Scaling Company Culture 23:47 Traits of a Great CEO 26:29 Self-Evaluation as a CEO 29:38 Technical Curiosity and Learning as a CEO 31:34 Future Trends in AI and Humanly's Vision 36:53 Motivation and Work-Life Balance 39:49 The Importance of Mentorship 42:12 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs in AI Connect with Prem — LinkedIn

Thu, 07 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://seesee.podigee.io/s3e3-richard-martin-part-2 40bed36a7fcc725d8c0c7b947c051918 What is a myth? What do we get out of them? Do myths die? Do gods die? In this episode dedicated to Greek mythology, Richard P. Martin, Antony and Isabelle Raubitschek Professor of Classics at Stanford, will guide us through the story of Prometheus, the legendary rebel who defied the gods by stealing fire from Mount Olympus to give to mankind. Through his storytelling we will learn about Prometheus' own mythic torment and explore the symbolism of his eternal punishment and sacrifice and its relationship to the mysteries of divination and Zeus' scorn at Prometheus' ability to tell the future. Get ready to let your imagination run wild as we picture ourselves in the incredible theatre of Dionysus in Athens! And listen to Prof. Martin on how in Athens the people refused to bow to a tyrant. You'll also get to learn what Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound has to do with tyranny and democracy! We'll delve into the fascinating implications of the new Pandora, as represented by AI, for humanity. And will be discussing the muses, creativity and the role of the human heart! Professor Richard Martin's major publications include Healing, Sacrifice and Battle. Amechania and Related Concepts in Early Greek Poetry; The Language of Heroes: Speech and Performance in the Iliad (Myth and Poetics); and Mythologizing Performance, published in 2020. In addition to several articles on Greek, Latin and Irish literature, he's the author of publications for general audiences, such as Classical Mythology, the Basics; Bulfinch's Mythology: The Age of the Fable, The Age of Chivalry, Legends of Charlemagne (The most complete compendium of mythology ever published); and Myths of the Ancient Greeks, published in 2023. An authority on Greek poetry and myth, Prof. Richard Martin has produced an internet version of Homer's Odyssey with a team at Stanford. https://classics.stanford.edu/people/richard-p-martin https://shc.stanford.edu/stanford-humanities-center/about/people/richard-martin https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/287398/myths-of-the-ancient-greeks-by-richard-p-martin/ 3 3 full no Dr. Cecilia Ponce Rivera

Fri, 01 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://seesee.podigee.io/s3e2-richard-martin-part-1 a4a12eea777b1932e7d4626b3e4a043a What is a myth? What do we get out of them? Do myths die? Do gods die? In this episode dedicated to Greek mythology, Richard P. Martin, Antony and Isabelle Raubitschek Professor of Classics at Stanford, will guide us through the story of Prometheus, the legendary rebel who defied the gods by stealing fire from Mount Olympus to give to mankind. Through his storytelling we will learn about Prometheus' own mythic torment and explore the symbolism of his eternal punishment and sacrifice and its relationship to the mysteries of divination and Zeus' scorn at Prometheus' ability to tell the future. Get ready to let your imagination run wild as we picture ourselves in the incredible theatre of Dionysus in Athens! And listen to Prof. Martin on how in Athens the people refused to bow to a tyrant. You'll also get to learn what Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound has to do with tyranny and democracy! We'll delve into the fascinating implications of the new Pandora, as represented by AI, for humanity. And will be discussing the muses, creativity and the role of the human heart! Professor Richard Martin's major publications include Healing, Sacrifice and Battle. Amechania and Related Concepts in Early Greek Poetry; The Language of Heroes: Speech and Performance in the Iliad (Myth and Poetics); and Mythologizing Performance, published in 2020. In addition to several articles on Greek, Latin and Irish literature, he's the author of publications for general audiences, such as Classical Mythology, the Basics; Bulfinch's Mythology: The Age of the Fable, The Age of Chivalry, Legends of Charlemagne (The most complete compendium of mythology ever published); and Myths of the Ancient Greeks, published in 2023. An authority on Greek poetry and myth, Prof. Richard Martin has produced an internet version of Homer's Odyssey with a team at Stanford. https://classics.stanford.edu/people/richard-p-martin https://shc.stanford.edu/stanford-humanities-center/about/people/richard-martin https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/287398/myths-of-the-ancient-greeks-by-richard-p-martin/ 3 2 full no Princeton,Greek poetry,Prometheus Myth,Prometheus Bound,Mythology,Stanford Academia,Prometheus,Fire,Storytelling,Zeus Dr. Cecilia Ponce Rivera

Humanly speaking we can not do this! Matthew 5:38-12, Mark 10:17-22

Mt 5:17-20   1) The Commandments of God are hard  James 1:10   “Humanly speaking, it is possible to understand the sermon on the mount in a thousand different ways. But Jesus knows only one possibility: simple surrender and obedience. Not interpreting or applying it but doing and obeying it. That is the only way to gear His words. He does not mean for us to discuss it as an ideal. He really means for us to get on with it” Dietrich Bonhoeffer    2) Jesus came to FULFILL the law    Matt 5:17   Gal 3:24-26   Col 2:13-15   3) The WAY is NARROW and NON-NEGOTIABLE   Mt 7:13-14   Jn 14:6   Jn 10:9   4) The WAY is a guided tour    Jn 10:14   Jn 10:27-28

The church in Antioch of Syria gained the reputation for sending out missionaries to the uttermost parts of the earth. This was the Apostle Paul's sending church. Humanly speaking, without this church and their obedience to the great commission of Christ, Paul could not have made the status report to the church at Colossae (1:5-6) that the gospel was preached and having impact in all the world. This means that within twenty years of Pentecost, the early churches had obeyed the great commission. The believers at the church of Antioch played a significant role in the work of missions. As we begin mission weeks, lets consider the church at Antioch.

Message for 08/01/2024 "Those Who Say Yes" by Justin McTeer. *All verses are NLT unless otherwise noted* Matthew 19:16-30 - Someone came to Jesus with this question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” 17 “Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments.” 18 “Which ones?” the man asked. And Jesus replied: “‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely.19 Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.'” 20 “I've obeyed all these commandments,” the young man replied. “What else must I do?” 21 Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions. 23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 24 I'll say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” 25 The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked. 26 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” 27 Then Peter said to him, “We've given up everything to follow you. What will we get?” 28 Jesus replied, “I assure you that when the world is made new and the Son of Man sits upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then. Matthew 20:1-16 - “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like the landowner who went out early one morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay the normal daily wage and sent them out to work. 3 “At nine o'clock in the morning he was passing through the marketplace and saw some people standing around doing nothing. 4 So he hired them, telling them he would pay them whatever was right at the end of the day. 5 So they went to work in the vineyard. At noon and again at three o'clock he did the same thing. 6 “At five o'clock that afternoon he was in town again and saw some more people standing around. He asked them, ‘Why haven't you been working today?' 7 “They replied, ‘Because no one hired us.' “The landowner told them, ‘Then go out and join the others in my vineyard.' 8 “That evening he told the foreman to call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last workers first. 9 When those hired at five o'clock were paid, each received a full day's wage.10 When those hired first came to get their pay, they assumed they would receive more. But they, too, were paid a day's wage.11 When they received their pay, they protested to the owner,12 ‘Those people worked only one hour, and yet you've paid them just as much as you paid us who worked all day in the scorching heat.' 13 “He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I haven't been unfair! Didn't you agree to work all day for the usual wage? 14 Take your money and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you.15 Is it against the law for me to do what I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?' 16 “So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.” Matthew 4:18-20 - One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. 19 Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” 20 And they left their nets at once and followed him. Matthew 19:21 - Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” Matthew 6:19-21 - “Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. 21 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Matthew 13:22 - The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God's word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. Hebrews 12:1 - Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. John 21:18-23 - “I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don't want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then Jesus told him, “Follow me.” 20 Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved—the one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper and asked, “Lord, who will betray you?” 21 Peter asked Jesus, “What about him, Lord?” 22 Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow me.” 23 So the rumor spread among the community of believers that this disciple wouldn't die. But that isn't what Jesus said at all. He only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”

"Let me teach you." Mt 11:29 NLTJesus said, "I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Mt16:18). When He spoke those words, the religious leaders of His day were plotting His death, the society in which He lived was controlled by the might of Rome, and His followers were common people. Humanly speaking, what He promised was audacious, and the possibilities of it happening were zero. Nevertheless, it came to pass. Two thousand years later, He is the most quoted author in the world, and our values are based on the principles He taught. How did He do it?By mentoring others. So when looking for a mentor, try to find someone who exemplifies the qualities and character Jesus displayed."Then Jesus said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light'" (Mt 11:28-30 NLT). Jesus used an agricultural illustration His listeners would understand. To get the highest productivity out of an ox, the yoke around its neck had to be a comfortable fit. And a good mentor is someone who understands you and knows what is the right fit for your temperament and talents. A mentor is an extra pair of eyes and ears and that always has your best interests at heart. When you think about it, having the right mentor is one of the best investments you can make in your future.Support the Show.Changing Lives | Building Strong Family | Impacting Our Community For Jesus Christ!

You need to go after it, and there is a good chance you will fail. There is also a good chance you will THRIVE. Most likely, you will fail. But after listening to this episode, you will pick the pieces back up and try again and again. Don't be afraid to fail - be afraid to never try. In this conversation with Antone Wilson, Courtney dives deep into what it means to be successful, and what it means to push the boundaries of what you beleive to be possible. If you've been yearning for a reset, this is the episode for you. You said tomorrow yesterday. I believe in you, so you should believe in you. Find Antone: Website Medium (Blog) LinkedIn Find Courtney: Find Courtney: Email: ynqpod@gmail.com IG Website YouTube

In this episode of The Elite Recruiter Podcast, Benjamin Mena sits down with Prem Kumar, a thought leader in AI-driven recruiting and CEO of Humanly. They dive deep into how AI can solve specific problems within recruiting, ensuring you not only streamline your hiring process but also enhance candidate experience. This episode is tailored for recruiters, hiring managers, and recruiting technology founders who are navigating the complexities of modern hiring landscapes. 1. AI's Role in Solving Recruiting Challenges: Prem Kumar outlines how AI isn't a choice between humans and chatbots but between a chatbot and being ignored. Discover the transformative power of AI in matching candidates and managing high applicant volumes effectively. 2. Best Practices for Implementing AI: Get insights on the importance of being vigilant with AI tools, understanding the technology behind them, and ensuring data protection. Learn from Prem's experience on how to ask the right questions and scrutinize the training data behind AI to build trust and ethics in your recruitment process. 3. Practical Applications and Tools: Explore the practical tools and strategies, such as generative AI tools like chat GPT that can drastically improve communication and body language during the hiring process. Plus, gain expert advice on understanding the daily challenges of recruiters to create more effective recruiting technology solutions. Transform your recruitment strategy with the latest AI advancements by listening to this episode of *The Elite Recruiter Podcast* and unlock the full potential of AI in your hiring processes. Finish The Year Strong Summit - https://finish-the-year-strong.heysummit.com/ AI Recruiting Summit - https://ai-recruiting-summit.heysummit.com/ Signup for future emails from The Elite Recruiter Podcast: https://eliterecruiterpodcast.beehiiv.com/subscribe YouTube: https://youtu.be/LKBe61Nxwp4 Prem Kumar LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/premskumar/  With your Host Benjamin Mena with Select Source Solutions: http://www.selectsourcesolutions.com/  Benjamin Mena LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminmena/  Benjamin Mena Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benlmena/

Today's Bible Verse: " David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." 1 Samuel 17:45 Want to listen without ads? Become a BibleStudyTools.com PLUS Member today: https://www.biblestudytools.com/subscribe/ MEET OUR HOSTS at https://www.lifeaudio.com/your-daily-bible-verse/ Full Transcript Below: Hello, thank you for listening to your daily bible verse, the podcast that examines one verse each day to learn more about God and His will for us. I'm your host Grace fox, and I am so glad you're here. I'm also excited to tell you about my new book Names of God living unafraid. If you've ever struggled with fear, then you will want to explore these seven names of God. They help us understand his character better, and by doing so help us rise above fear. The books available wherever Christian books are sold, I invite you to visit my website and subscribe to my updates to receive a printable of prayers based on the seven names in the book. You'll find me at Gracefox.com. And now, after this short word from our sponsor, we'll dive into today's Bible verse, 1 Samuel 17:45.  Today's Bible verse is 1 Samuel 17:45. "David said to the Philistine, you come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied."  I love watching movies or reading stories where the main character faces a challenge that seems insurmountable and wins. It does my heart good to see the little guy defeat the giant. Maybe that's why I enjoy the Bible story of David and Goliath so much. The little guy in this story was only a teenager, the youngest brother relegated to the despicable task of caring for his father's clocks. One day at his father's bidding, he took food to his brothers who were soldiers in Israel's army. That's when he witnessed a nine foot tall giant in the enemy army, intimidate his brothers and the others fighting in the same forces. The Goliath giant strutted towards the troops and hurled insults and threats, and the entire army ran away in fear. He did this twice a day for 40 days. But things changed when David showed up. Humanly speaking, David didn't stand a chance against Goliath. Like I said a moment ago the giant tower and more than nine feet tall. He was also fully armored. 1 Samuel 17:5-7 says "he wore a bronze helmet and his bronze coat of male weighed 125 pounds. He also wore bronze leg armor and he carried a bronze Javelin on his shoulder. The shaft of his spear was as heavy and thick as a weaver's beam, tipped with an iron spearhead that weighed 15 pounds. His armor bearer walked ahead of him carrying a shield."  This guy seemed impenetrable. It's no wonder he intimidated the Israelite army. Unlike Goliath, whose bronze jacket probably weighed as much or more than David. The teenager wore no battle protection whatsoever. No helmet, no leg coverings no coat to cover his body. David carried no javelin and he certainly had no armor bearer walking ahead of him carrying a protective shield. from a human perspective. His defeat was a guarantee. But here's the thing. David face the giant with no fear. He not only stood his ground, he ran towards a giant in strength and courage because he had a weapon more powerful than a bronze javelin and body armor. He entered the battle in the power of the name of the Lord Almighty. The name Lord Almighty is translated from the compound Hebrew name. Yahweh Saba Oat. Yawei refers to the Lord creator and King over heaven and earth, who desires relationship with us. Saba means host or armies and implies the amassing of forces, sometimes within a military context. As I did research for my new book Names of God living unafraid, I found that scripture suggests three possible applications for this name. First, God is Commander in Chief of the armies of man second And he is Chief over angelic beings both good and evil. And third, he is supreme over all the heavenly hosts, sun, moon stars and planets. Theologians agree on these applications and they also agree that we needn't choose one over the other because God is God. Over all. Different Bible versions translate the name Yahweh Sabaoh in different ways. The New International Version says Lord Almighty, the New Living Translation says the Lord of Heaven's armies. The New American Standard, says, The Lord of Armies and the English Standard Version says the Lord of hosts, regardless of the translation, your way Saba Oh tells us that God is invincible in battle. He is Commander in Chief and nothing stands in his way. Nothing stops him from accomplishing His purposes. David understood this aspect of God's character. And this understanding was the weapon with which David faced the giant. We face giants to don't we not the nine foot tall type, but giants concerning our health or the health of a loved one. We face the giant of addictions, a prodigal child, a difficult marriage, a financial setback or disappointment over a detour on which life has taken us. The Giants we face don't look like Goliath, but they cast a shadow of fear across our way.  We feel outsized, and fear says we're out done. Our human bent was to turn around and run. But there's hope, my friend, when fear of uncertainty or failure or inadequacy looms before us and Tom says, Let's not let it intimidate us into running the other way. Instead, let's remember who God is. The Lord Almighty the Lord of hosts, the Lord of Heaven's Armies, Commander in Chief for whom nothing is impossible. He's invincible in battle, and he is on our side, giving us the courage and strength we need to face our giants. I love that God's given us stories about characters like David stories about little guys who faced giants and won because they trusted the Lord Almighty, and refused to succumb to fear. I also love that God gave us the ultimate example of his power to overcome giants, through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus. My friend, the power of Yahweh Saba Oat, the Lord Almighty, raised Jesus from the dead. In doing so he conquered mankind's worst enemy once and for all, who plays faith in Jesus for salvation. This is the power of Yahweh said I thought, and this is the power at your disposal.   The apostle Paul wrote about it in his letter to the believers in Ephesus. We find his words in Ephesians 1:19-20, where he wrote, "I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms."  We might feel like the little guy when we face our giant, whatever he looks like, fear might make our heart quake and our knees knock. But like David, let's remember that we don't fight our battles in human strength or wisdom. We fight in the name of Yahweh the Lord Almighty, the Lord of the heavens armies, and he is invincible.  May I pray for you? Heavenly Father, thank You for manifesting your character to us through your Hebrew names. Thank you for revealing yourself as the Lord of Heaven's army's commander in chief for whom nothing is impossible. When we feel afraid, remind us of this aspect of your nature and help us walk in its truth. As Paul prayed, help us understand the incredible greatness of your power for us who believe you In Jesus mighty name, amen. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Automating the application process is pretty popular these days. From companies like Paradox to Humanly and others, allowing job seekers to submit their information by tapping a screen or talking into a phone is becoming big business. Then along comes Germany-based Talk'n'Job who believe they've built a better mousetrap, and they've even won a competition that says they just might. CEO Markus Krampe joins the boys in a lively Q&A to get to the bottom of things and whether or not Talk'n'Job has what it takes to compete on a grand scale. Do they survive the Firing Squad? Gotta listen. 00:00 - Talk'n'Job Intro 03:20 - Market Challenges and Opportunities 13:13 - Funding and Expansion Plans 16:27 - Blue-Collar Jobs and Easy Recruitment Processes 27:44 - The Impact of AI

Many Americans work their entire lives and end up retiring with nothing. But a group of frugal obsessives is challenging that.They call their approach FIRE: “financial independence, retire early.”Amy X. Wang, the assistant managing editor of The New York Times Magazine, looks at the people behind this growing movement and their bid to rethink how long we work.Guest: Amy X. Wang, the assistant managing editor of The New York Times Magazine. Background reading: Allen Wong is one of the FIRE adherents who always knew how he wanted to live life. After decades of tolerating workaholic culture as the norm, employees are tired and unafraid to show it.FIRE started in the early 2000s with a mantra of extreme saving, but the pandemic forged new followers.For more information on today's episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

This week, the boys cover a wide range of topics, including favorite new TV shows, shoutouts, events, and industry news, including a possible meltdown at DailyPay and a day of reckoning for Joonko. They dig into the recent acquisition of Teamable by Humanly and the acquisition of SkyHive Technologies by Cornerstone OnDemand. Plus, the uncover Indeed's strategic plans for market expansion shared on a corporate video. Then, WeWork better beware, 'cause Chuck E. Cheese is coming for a piece of its pizza pie as a remote workspace of choice. 00:00 - Intro and Entertainment 03:51 - Industry News and Acquisitions 13:11 - Events and Celebrations 18:39 - Humanly Acquisition 26:26 - CornerSone Acquisition 26:52 - Indeed's Market Expansion Strategy 27:34 - Challenges of Skills-Based Hiring 43:37 - Chuck E. Cheese as a Remote Workspace

The Shred is a weekly roundup of who's raised funds, who's been acquired and who's on the move in the world of recruitment. The Shred is brought to you today by Jobcase.

The storyline of the Bible is the story of people who by faith meet God and their lives are forever changed. When we come to Joshua 2, we meet a very interesting woman named Rahab, and throughout Scripture she is most often referred to as “Rahab the Harlot”, or the “prostitute”. God choses to reveal what kind of God He is often by the people He calls and uses to fulfill His kingdom purposes. When we read the stories of these individuals, we should find tremendous hope for ourselves as we realize that God is a God of grace, mercy, and love!   I couldn't help but think about how we have been studying about the life of Joshua who was called and prepared by God to take the place of the great Moses to lead to people into the Promise Land. From being born a slave in Egypt, redeemed by the blood of a lamb, crossing the Red Sea miraculously, becoming Moses' assistant, leading the army of Israel to victory over Amalek, by faith giving a good report after spying out the land, we see God at work in his life. He is a godly worshipper. Most of this training took place in the wilderness outside the Promise Land.   But at the same time God is at work inside the Promise Land, inside the City of Jericho, the first major obstacle between the people of Israel and their inheritance. God was revealing Himself to a prostitute that He was going to use to help the people of Israel conquer this great fortress. And as we will also find out that God is going to use in another wonderful way! In one chapter we go from Joshua, a godly worshipper, to Rahab, a pagan, idol worshipping prostitute. What an amazing story!!!!   Only two women are personally named in Hebrews 11, in the "The Hall of Fame of Faith": Sarah, the wife of Abraham (v. 11), and Rahab, the harlot of Jericho (v. 31). Sarah was a godly woman, the wife of the founder of the Hebrew race; and God used her dedicated body to bring Isaac into the world. But Rahab was an ungodly Gentile who worshiped pagan gods and sold her body for money. Humanly speaking, Sarah and Rahab had nothing in common. But from the divine viewpoint, Sarah and Rahab shared the most important thing in life: They both had exercised saving faith in the true and living God.   Not only does the Bible associate Rahab with Sarah; but in James 2:21-26, it also associates her with Abraham. James used both Abraham and Rahab to illustrate the fact that true saving faith always proves itself by good works.   But there's more! The Bible associates Rahab with the Messiah! When you read the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 1, you find Rahab's name listed there (v. 5), along with Jacob, David, and the other famous people in the Messianic line. She has certainly come a long way from being a pagan prostitute to being an ancestress of the Messiah! "But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound" (Rom. 5:20).   But keep in mind that the most important thing about Rahab was her faith. That's the most important thing about any person, for "without faith it is impossible to please Him [God]" (Heb. 11:6). Not everything that is called "faith" is really true faith, the kind of faith that is described in the Bible. For the next few days, we are going to be looking at Joshua 2 and the kind of faith that Rahab had!   We so often get so accustomed to our “spiritual bubbles” that we live in, our homes, our church and fellowship groups, that we think that is the only place God is working! I'm encouraged by the story of Rahab to know that God is working even in the lives of people that are actively involved in this wicked evil world, and He is about to change them from a raging “Saul” to an Apostle Paul, that will turn the world upside down for Jesus!   Remember, God is ready to transform you today by His grace, mercy, love, and power, to be on mission with Him in changing this sinful world around us!   God bless!

Welcome to the Gospel Rant. Hebrews assumes that we Christians are, in spite of what we say, here still on planet earth for a reason only secondarily for our own success and well-being. Face it, heaven would be so much better. No we have a grand celestial eternal purpose, modeled by Jesus and Moses. We are here to be part of the salvation story of others. We don't redeem anyone. But somehow, what we do, and how we do it proclaims salvation to them. That's the good news. The bad news is that like Jesus and Moses, and Israel in the wilderness, that goal may only be achieved through our persecution, suffering and even harm. I don't like it much either. It is the big theme of Hebrews. Humanly speaking, you will shudder in fear and rather stay in your tents in the wilderness. No judgement. But you, sons and daughters of God can ask for power, through the Spirit in your inner being to access heaven-born faith (willingness to be led into temptation, confidence in God, boldness) and heaven-born righteousness (caring for others over self) so that like Jesus and Moses and at least two Jews in the wilderness, you will do it—in order to rescue and save others. We Americans hate this plan. But the template is Jesus, who willingly suffered and died and many children were saved. At one point you said, “Father, wherever you lead I will follow.” OK, he's taking you seriously—because he loves you as much as the father loves the son and the son loves the father. But don't expect life to be a rose garden. And he has something to prepare you for the struggle. You don't naturally have it. Curious? Welcome to Gospel Rant and God's Love for the Unlovable.Support The Show: https://www.gospelrant.com/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

“Once upon a time in a faraway land…” is the language of fairy tales, and through them, a longing in the heart can well up. In this episode, Stasi shares that we identify with these stories because they speak to both our story and our identity—our longing to be pursued, fought for, and loved, and the truth that we are more than meets the eye. God's promise is the promise of restoration, and in him, we can both discover and be restored to who we are truly meant to be. There is transformative power in understanding one's true self in the heart of God, allowing his voice to be the ultimate authority in defining our identity.…..SHOW NOTES:…..VERSES: Luke 19:10 (NLT) — For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.Matthew 3:16-17 (NLT) —  After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV) — The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.John 10:10 (NIV) — The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.Ezekiel 37:1-10 (NLT) — The Valley of Dry BonesLuke 1:34-37 (NKJV) — Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. For with God nothing will be impossible.”Matthew 19:25-26 (NLT) — The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”Ecclesiastes 9:4 (NLT) — Anyone who is among the living has hope…Isaiah 62:2-4 (NIV) — …you will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow. You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord's hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the Lord will take delight in you,  and your land will be married.Isaiah 62:12 — (NIV)  They will be called the Holy People,  the Redeemed of the Lord; and you will be called Sought After,Song of Song 7:10 (NIV) — I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.…..Don't Miss Out on the Next Episode – Subscribe for FreeSubscribe using your favorite podcast app:Spotify Podcasts – https://spoti.fi/42SsOipApple Podcasts – https://apple.co/42E0oZ1 Google Podcasts – http://wahe.art/3M81kxLAmazon Music & Audible – https://amzn.to/3M9u6hJ

"Seven Hundred Years of Humanist Freethinking, Inquiry, and Hope"

A meditation preached on March 20, 2024 at Hawthorn School for Girls. We are closing into the end of Lent. Yesterday we celebrated the solemnity of St. Joseph. We have been meditating on this figure during Lent. Sometimes seen as the silent type in the corner, who doesn't say much. He may have taught Jesus the art of carpentry, yes. But that does not mean he was silently stepping back in the background all the time. Jesus did know how to speak quite eloquently in public. He captivated people with his parables, and his images. Humanly hu must have seen that in Joseph. Perhaps Joseph was not just the silent type who doesn't say much at the cocktail party. Maybe he also learnt from him great eloquence and language, and images. Crosses are covered now so that we can integrate the meaning of the cross in our life, more interiorly. That means understanding suffering and pain. Joseph guides us. Music: 'Undertow' by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com Thumbnail: Commercial print of Joseph, from Sanctified Souls Shop

Through Christ, you can be more than a conqueror over anxiety, discouragement, fears of the future, or depression. It's a good lesson to remember during Disability Awareness Month. Even if you don't have a disability, Romans 8:37 is a good lesson for you today, too. -------- Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible.   Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org.   Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Connie Baker, LPC author of Traumatized by Religious Abuse and a therapist who works with survivors of religious trauma, joins Uncertain to discuss what thriving might look like after Spiritual Abuse. This is a nuanced subject, intended to provide hope (not pressure!). Thank you for joining us for Spiritual Abuse Awareness Month in 2024! [00:00:00] I'm Katherine Spearing, and this is Uncertain. It's Spiritual Abuse Awareness Month, and this is our last episode of January 2024. My guest today is someone who It has become very, very special to me. Her name is Connie Baker. She is a therapist. She has a book for survivors of religious abuse. And Connie was our very first guest speaker at our very first in person event.Back in October, and it was phenomenal. She can speak to the survivor experience in such a meaningful way because she is one. And she's been doing this work long before I even heard of spiritual abuse.She has so much knowledge and I trust her to address this subject of thriving after spiritual abuse with nuance and care because nobody wants to be pressured [00:01:00] into thriving when you're just trying to survive and that's not the point of this episode but this is a glimmer of hope for down the road that maybe someday maybe someday We will be here. Here is my conversation with Connie Baker.Katherine: Hello, Connie. How are you? Connie: Good. So fun to see you, Catherine. I'm so Katherine: excited to see you again. For our listeners, Connie was our guest speaker, keynote speaker at the RetreatCon, which was Terzian's very first in person event in the fall. She was phenomenal. I loved every moment of her. Connie's talks, but then also just getting to hang out with this person.So if you have a chance to buy her book and oh shoot, I'm totally blanking on the name of your book. What Connie: is it? It's right, Traumatized by Religious Abuse. Yes. Say it one more time. Traumatized by Religious Abuse. Katherine: Beautiful.Wonderful. Amazing book. Very, very, very practical. A lot of folks [00:02:00] have named your book is just very practical for survivors. And one of the things that we invited Connie to do at the retreat con was speak about. Yeah. thriving after spiritual abuse, which I think so many of us are surviving. Maybe we're healing.We don't really talk about like that moment when you get a chance to just kind of come out of that survival space and laugh. And have fun and see the sun and, and it seems impossible sometimes that we'll ever get to that place. Yes. But, but Connie, Connie is really great about making that realistic. Not, that's, that's what I think I loved about it.It's not fluffy and silver linings. It's realistic and I learned so much from your talk. So I'm really excited to get to jump into that again. to just get us started and sort of lay a [00:03:00] foundation for discussing what it's like to thrive after spiritual abuse after we've been through this. Could you paint a picture for us of what the impact of spiritual abuse feels like?Like, what does that look like to someone? Oh, Connie: yes, yes, I can. Yes, I can. And before we go there, Catherine, I just want to say, I am so thrilled that that was the first retreat. Like, in other words, others are following. It was so, and I know you probably talked about this in follow up podcasts after the retreat, but it was powerful having all those humans.And I think there was also extra power in it post, well, post late pandemic, whatever we're calling this thing for people to to. Humanly be in the same space and connect. I think, well, Terry, just remembering it, it just was so [00:04:00] powerful. And so I'm just thrilled that you are hosting. Cause we talked about this when I was there.We both have hosted big events before, you know, in our life. And I know what it takes to put something like that on. What was there 25, 30 people somewhere in that range, you know, and, and to have that. And the spaces that you. Provided anyway, I just want everybody to go to second annual. Yes, everybody to thank you so much.Yeah, no, I just I'm just reflecting thinking back just with you even, you know, yes, just being here with you. Remembering just the. Goodness. And all the things that happened there. Katherine: Yeah, I, I've, I felt all of those things too. And just was just so thrilled at, I mean, I just like picture that weekend and it's like surrounded and like sunlight and warmth in my mind.Like that's the image. It was just such a warm. Just, oh, [00:05:00] and then that whole idea of thriving after spiritual abuse, like we got to taste it, this can be real. This isn't fake. This isn't this isn't false positivity. This is genuine, you know, just joy, like an experience of joy.And the fact that like, oh, after all, all of us have been through, you know, And in this room and we're laughing together. Like it was just like, Oh, we Connie: laughed so much. Oh my gosh. And you brought a lot of that. You and your leadership team are just pretty damn funny. And we had a lot of fun with that. And so, yeah, I just wanted to say that when you're talking about that connection, because it really, it really was, I'm just like, no, y'all sign up for number two, second annual Be there.Katherine: So be there for the second one. Absolutely. Connie: Exactly. Exactly. So anyway, the question he asked me, what is it? What is the impact of spiritual [00:06:00] abuse? Oh my goodness. I think, I think a lot. In fact, we talked about this at the retreat. I think a lot in life domains. I think it helps break down sometimes. Like what is What is happening to me?Because it just feels like an avalanche. It feels like you are rolling down the mountain in an avalanche and you can't see what's up down, you know. So I guess I think about, you know, different domains of life spiritually. Oh, let's, let's take Let's take the explosion 1 right off the bat. It can not not have an impact spiritually.And that doesn't mean that you're for sure going to walk away from the faith, although that absolutely could and sometimes should be what a person does. That's it. It's not just permission. It's like, no. You find your path. But there's a big [00:07:00] range of what that means, means, but there is no way there is not huge levels of damage, spiritually.It's like existentially, let's take God out of the mix, even, if you're, it doesn't matter whether you say, Whoa, I'm not about this God thing anymore. You still have to rewrite meaning purpose. Life after death, the, the, the, what is a human being? I mean, you just gotta rewrite all that. It's just huge.So there again, spiritually, it, it can be devastating. And often is. Often, for me I think. What am I in decade? I've done, I'm over three decades past my primary spiritual abuse and there's still times I go, okay, still rewriting a little bit of this. Katherine: It went, it went deep. Connie: Yes, it goes deep. So then I'm thinking the impact on the body.Most people don't get out of it without sickness, or, or [00:08:00] injury, or, we're connected beings, so physically it can just smack ya. In so many ways, I'm not gonna elaborate, but just to help people think through what is the impact, you know? Then you've got the emotional, psychological, which most people go through.first. And it's like, right, that's true. Katherine: Yes. Yeah. I'm probably the one that makes most sense. Yes. But as you said, we're integrated and Connie: it's going to affect our bodies and our spirits and our whatever we want to call it. So, so the trauma, I mean, you and I are therapists and those listeners who've heard, you know, you, you know, your stuff and Trauma affects our neurological system, our, you know, our brain, our body, our thought process, our emotions.And so it's just, it just is so extensive and pervasive. I think is another good word. Then you get into the social realm. Yeah. What does it do to families? [00:09:00] Oh, . What does it do to friendships, to community, to parent child relationships, to marriages, to partnerships? I mean the social impact and community. Oh, how I was just telling client this, I think two days ago.It was yesterday. We were talking about, she's like, I just, I'm trying to sort out how to get community. And I could tell by how she was talking about it, there was kind of this framework, like, I'm the only one. Why, why, why is this so hard for me? I'm sure other people have it together. There was kind of this underlying implication.And I said, you just need to know something. Do you know, I have this conversation almost daily. Wow. With my clients. What? How? You're not the only one. No! Please! Rebuilding, especially if you've been raised in the church, [00:10:00] Rick, the, okay, we all know on this podcast. What the toxic streams that run through organized religion.We're clear on that. But I'm telling you, for better and for worse, they do community like nobody else. Katherine: Yeah, and that's just the reality of like how to find that type of organic community. Oh! Side of the church that that I think that's probably the biggest grief for me. And then for so many people How do I get that that's the part I miss the most Connie: besides trauma recovery I would say community especially if we're talking about thriving when people are finally Starting to put their head up above A little bit and look around to see the devastation.That's one of the first questions and it's one of the hardest. So if Those listeners If you guys are struggling to say, how do I do? Community you are not alone. It is [00:11:00] like one of the core themes after trauma recovery I would say it's number two of saying how do I get the social support and the community?Resources that I used to have in a church because it is what Organized religion does for the positive. It, it provides consistent meeting places, a common worldview, and a common purpose you're working toward. And I feel like those three things are just in reflection over three decades of trying to sort all this through.Those are the three things I've come down to. A lot of organizations have one or two of those, but the power is all three. And it, This consistent meeting time, again, the consistent meeting time, the common world, commonly held worldview, and doing something, making something together, you know, creating something together.Oh my gosh, like, it's a powerhouse, I think in a very positive way. [00:12:00] We all know it can go very toxic and all that, but there's also we, we continue our, I think our souls continue to look for that when we say, I can't do that thing anymore or in that way. Even if you stay in an organized religion in a church, almost everybody I know says, Oh, my relationship with church is completely different.Like it used to be everything. Okay. So we're getting all. Yeah. The community topic, the damage is so huge and then it can damage things like your finances. All can wipe out your finances to go through religious abuse or to be religious abuse or either one and then you've got career. It can even shift career paths for people.And so my hand, yes, right. Exactly. My career. Yeah. Oh, totally. I would never have gone into this field without without my abuse. Not never, but highly unlikely. Honestly. So, so all these different domains of [00:13:00] life, it can. It can determine where you live, you could make up and have to have a move. So I just want to just to be able to bring all that in and say, you know, the impact is monumental.Right. Katherine: And when you said at the beginning, just like addressing that spiritual part, I think that for even folks who have experienced it we'll kind of do this like compartmentalizing thing of like, it's just, I just need to figure out that part and like what I believe now. And, and then maybe, or even compartmentalizing it and like, okay, I am done with God and I'm done with church and I'm moving on.But then not recognize all the other places that that is impacting and try to address that one compartment of spirituality. And so I'm very thankful to you for pointing out all of the ways that this can impact us and that we can't just compartmentalize and just say the right [00:14:00] spiritual thing.Connie: Yeah, we can't and we can't compartmentalize any of them. Even even when you talk about mental. You know, you and I are therapists. When we talk about the mental emotional realm, you can't compartmentalize that because we're hooked to physical bodies and we're hooked to worldviews and existential ideas and money and it's like, no, you know, whatever it is, that part alone, if that, if our brains and neurological system take that hard to hit, it's going to have, it's going to have bleed over into other domains.And so, yes, but I totally agree often. Yeah. Because that's how our brains are trained to think all spiritual, to be very compartmentalized and say the spiritual is the most important. And I think that's, I think that's fine to think that, but it's not the only. You know, and, and to say, Oh, I'm just going to figure out we can cuss on here, right?Yes. In the spiritual, I'm thinking, I'm just going to say it in the [00:15:00] spiritual realm, get it gathered there. We'll just make everything. Okay. It's like, Oh. You've taken a lot harder hit than just a spiritual issue and that's huge. I'm not minimizing it. I'm just saying it's, it does not stand alone, which is what exactly what you're saying.Katherine: Yeah. And then I also appreciate you highlighting the financial part too, because I think that that's a. a place that is sort of a hidden impact of it. And, you know, maybe your career and you like switch jobs or you get a new job or you switch careers or you move or Connie: you or might have to make a physical move.Katherine: Yeah. Yeah. Or you, you didn't, or your job wasn't impacted and you weren't like on staff at a church or something and you were still able to do your job. But then. The physical impact that leads to potentially having to go on meds or, or getting ill, as you mentioned, or having to go to therapy and pay [00:16:00] for therapy.Like, I mean, I just think of like how much money I've spent on therapy in a decade. I'm like, I could have bought a house with that money. Connie: So Katherine: much money that I am very. Believe was very well spent. I don't regret spending it. But at the same time, it's like that. That is a massive one of the reasons. Yeah.And one of the reasons by tears of Eden, we offer our support groups for free because there are so many other things that people have to spend money on to recover. We don't want to give you another thing that you have to spend money on in order to recover. So yeah, I really appreciate you highlighting, highlighting all of those things for us.What are some of the initial steps that you have seen people take in that healing journey? Common, common things that people will do. Once they have come out of this really horrendous experience. What are some of the steps? Connie: Oh, that's a [00:17:00] great question. Well, you know, I'm a therapist. And so 1 of them is they're coming to therapy is 1 of them.And, you know, and let me say something. I truly don't believe that therapy is the only way to heal. I truly don't. I think there are people. And there are resources and there are online resources. There are so many things that can help us heal. And a lot of times people go, Oh Connie, you know that person.Oh my gosh, they so need to go to therapy. And, you know, and, and I'll be like, I need therapy. Yes, exactly. Well, I, I see why you're saying that. Yes, indeed. But, but really, There's also, therapy is one piece of a pie in healing, so, and sometimes it's a really essential pie, and part of the piece of the pie, and sometimes it's not that [00:18:00] essential a piece, sometimes people do a really good job of doing their own work using other resources, so what I see is people, you know, what they start doing, part of it is they start actually processing their own story in some way or another, so They're like, okay, what, what just happened to me?Like, I know I was just in an explosion or an avalanche, whatever we want to call it. But, like. What happened? How did it happen? How did it happen to me? What happened? A lot of times it's not even clear what exactly took place. All I know, I'm bleeding out an artery and I don't know exactly what happened.Was, was I in a car wreck? Or was it a tornado? Or was it an avalanche? Or how did I get here? So I think processing this story is, [00:19:00] is another thing that people really start doing when they Just like survive the first initial Blow and saying either I'm distancing myself or I'm getting out or whatever form that takes.I think those are a couple really big things right off the top. They start and to heal and thrive. They start having to make connections with other people who get it. Somehow, there may not even fully be other survivors, although I think that's super helpful and healing, but at the beginning, it just may be somebody who has a good sense and and will Katherine: validate.That was a big deal. Yes, Connie: that was really painful. Yes, exactly. And that was traumatizing and. Wow, how did you survive that the validation feels like such and and they and I think most people in some way or another start getting educated about it [00:20:00] and that's the answering what happened and I know my book I always say I wrote to me at 25 years old I wrote saying what girl what did you need to understand that you had no clue about that would have Facilitated your healing instead of taking a decade to think I was going to survive the resources we have now.It's like, you can't speed up the process, but you can help it and aid it and keep from getting from. Infected you know, re traumatized. There's certain things you can do to help healing progress. Well, and I didn't have a lot of that. So that definition of what happened, how was I vulnerable? I'm a strong, yeah, I'm a strong cognitive person.How did, how did this happen to me? I'm a leader. How did this happen? So, you know, all of those things, I think sorting out [00:21:00] the story, getting validation from other people who go, whose eyes get wide and they're like, What did you go through? And especially when you've got a whole community that's basically saying, it's your fault.You know, the whole, if you leave a community, the whole community is like, Hmm, your problem, it's your fault if it's an abusive system. And Katherine: that's a lot of people saying that about you. Connie: Oh, you're, sometimes your whole world. I mean, everybody that matters. As saying that you're Paul and I remember telling the story to other people, including my second date with my husband, who is now my husband.There was some good trauma dumping that happened there anyway. And honestly, it was also some important information both of us needed to know. And. And so I remember telling him and him being a pastor, a former pastor, he looked right at me and said, that was abuse. Nice. Oh, there were probably some abusive [00:22:00] elements, but I was, you know, it was my issue.I made some bad choices. Oh my gosh, thank God for my husband, you know, who was like calling bullshit. Yeah, this was abuse. Yeah. And to tell other people outside of the system and watch their eyes get wide and say, they did what to you? They did. And those people who don't know my story, I was sexually abused by a pastor and then blamed by the church and.kicked out for it. That's the short story. And so, you know, to hear people, to tell my story, not in those words, actually taking much more responsibility. For what happened and then look at me and say they did what and I'm like, why are you not saying? Why did you do that? Yeah And it's just so important to have those other people So those are some of the immediate things that come to mind when I think of what people are doing I'm sure there's a much better list, but those are some immediate things when Katherine: people are processing their story in the aftermath?What [00:23:00] percentage of folks or what? range of folks It's that process their story, but not just the story of the abuse, because I'm thinking of another domain that this might resuscitate is, is your past and like, Oh, what happened in your childhood that like brought you to this place and how. How are, I mean, I know that that happened for me of, of knowing that the trauma that I was experiencing in the church, because it was so similar to what I experienced in my family, that I was severely, not only traumatized in real time, but I was also being re traumatized, and having to balance that.So, yeah, what percentage of people were, were it impacts their entire life story, not just that part? Connie: I, I don't see Always, never, every, but I will say 99. 9%. Yes. Katherine: I'm not going to say every person, but I'm going to say most people. Connie: Yeah, pretty much every person. Yeah. Part of it [00:24:00] is because we bring, this is part of brain science, is we bring our paradigm, our neuropathways for positive and for negative to every situation we encounter.And so if we're, if, If power and control dynamics are already familiar, and if you're raised in conservative religion, they are. They can't not be. And the more conservative and fundamentalist, in my view, the more power and control dynamics come into play in the institution and the world view, those are deeply familiar and viewed as positive.And so you, how would you not step foot? Yeah, into a system that loves power and control and eventually misuses it. And so to me, and you don't understand those dynamics. I mean, you just don't, you don't get that when you're [00:25:00] raised like that. This is, you know, the Bible says, God says, the pastor says it's, it is.What's considered by everybody to be incredibly positive, helpful you know, the right thing. And so to bring that, the, all those neural pathways that form a worldview and you put trauma, most of us, 99. 9 percent of us have either trauma with a capital T or a lowercase T in childhood and adolescence, you don't survive this life without.Massive jolts as a child or adolescent. So then you create worldviews. Around those, you're bringing them into the next, if they're not processed well, and most of us take our lifetime to process these well, and that's not discouraging, that's just realistic, but we usually don't have it all processed at 20 years old, and, no, we don't have it all processed then, and so we're bringing even previous trauma, and the [00:26:00] familiar feel of how that got there, and, So, yes, we're, it is, I have yet to sit with a person for very long and say, Oh, this is the sole thing we're talking about.I don't even remember ever doing that. It's like, okay, we're talking about this, but they start saying, Oh, my gosh, this was a replication of this situation in my childhood. Yes, it was. It's what we do. And there's no, there's no shame in that. It's just what, it's how our brains work for better and for worse.This is, I mean, you know, us therapists deal with pathology, but our brain has also given us all kinds of survival tools, how we cope through all of that. So, Katherine: yeah, and those things can sometimes even help to like the process of just like recognizing that something is helping us recognize something is wrong or helping us helping us wake up.And that that those experiences are can also be just really Can be helpful and [00:27:00] and our resources that we can tap into as we are in that healing process, and I don't want to skip over the healing process as we jump into thriving so I just want to create a disclaimer of like when we talk about thriving.This is, this is like. A way to just provide some future hope. Not as a way to put pressure. We're not saying you need to be here or you need to be here at a certain time. Connie: In fact, some people shouldn't be here yet. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't want them to arrive yet. Right. Right. You know, it's, that would, you know, and I use physical metaphors all the time, but that's like, you know, when I was going through cancer and treatment saying you need to start training for a marathon girl.No, no, it's not Katherine: that's the need to get through your day. That's what Connie: exactly survive today. Make sure you're getting something in your stomach. Make sure your nausea meds, you know, whatever it [00:28:00] means. It's not time to do a marathon, but we're talking about a level. Of robust health in the future that's possible and that's where I just yeah, I, I remember at the retreat.I said, how many of you know, I said, how, how does us talking about thriving land or something to that effect because I knew there were going to be people that are going, Oh, shut up. I don't want to keep flagging. I'm like, and, and good for you. That's right. Because your system is telling you this is premature and.And just take it as that. Say, yeah, I'll hear this, you know, have, listen to these two yapping about thriving. But I also think it could be, it's a hopeful beacon too, to say, you're going to be able to. And, and some of you listening, I know are, are either on the verge or starting to say, I think I'm past survival mode and it will be your time to hear some of this.Yeah. And, Katherine: and one of the, the markers [00:29:00] of trauma is feeling stuck. And have this vision of like, it will not always be this way. There is a time in the future where you will laugh again, and you will thrive. That can help unstuck us. And that's the point of this. This episode not to say you should drive. No.Why aren't you thriving yet? Absolutely not. No, no. Connie: I'm so glad we're talking about that because yeah, it's like, no, some of you, and I think it'd be, it's great for people even right now to take a breath and say, how do I feel about this topic? What? And most of the time, what mixed feelings? It used to, we're not one way or the other, but what mixed feelings do I have about this topic?And to just, you know, welcome all of those feelings about it and, and honor them as we talk, Katherine: and if you, and if you feel like. This is where you, you leave us and you need to [00:30:00] pause the episode and come back in a few months or a few years. You're, you can do, you can do that. Connie: Please do that. Exactly. Katherine: Absolutely.With that, what's thriving Connie: and how do we get there? What is thriving? Well, you know, there's all kinds of ways to define it. But of course, I, MarkerConnie: a bit of a nerd, you know, just kind of, I'm thinking, what is the definition? And I went to, you know, some good old dictionary, standard dictionary definitions, and I like them.To grow or develop vigorously. Isn't that a great word? Oh, I love it. To prosper or flourish. Oh, I like the word flourish. Yes, isn't that beautiful? To do particularly well under specified conditions. That's another one I loved about. Oh, that's Yes to do particularly well under specified, you know, because then that gives us options to say [00:31:00] Kinda like a plant.What specific plant food does that plant need? Does it need more light? Less light? Does it need more water, less lot water and to, to allow ourselves, I think the individuality of healing and then thriving needs to be honored. Mm-Hmm. It is not a prescription. Okay. I mean, how often Catherine, you know, this happens.My, my clients are like, how long is it gonna take me to get better? Give me, give me a time frame. Okay, we've been doing this Katherine: for a while. Let's, let's Connie: Yeah, let's First of all, with the physical body, it's much easier to do that, and there are still, you know, doctors still fudge and say, well, you could be up and around in three days, or it could be up to like three months, you know?I mean, there's, even in the physical body, There are those, this doesn't always everybody, everybody's body doesn't do it the same and you put that in a [00:32:00] brain in a, in a neurological system and the variables are huge. So I just want everybody to, you know, be able to say, this is my journey. I mean, the downside is we can't say, okay, process your story and month one.Do this in month two, you know, it doesn't work like that. First of all life happens, right? I mean, yeah So and so to come back and just honor This is my path and something you said earlier to we often feel very stuck in trauma recovery But most of the time and I will say this is most I would say but I would say 19 out of 20 Times when my clients say I'm stuck.I'm like, oh, okay That's kind of that's important to look at are you stuck? So let's take a look. So are you? Exactly where you were a year ago. Oh, no. Not, oh gosh, [00:33:00] no. Oh. Then maybe this isn't stuck. They hate this. Cause, especially the ones who've been with me a while. I feel stuck. Don't say it. I know. Yeah, don't say it, because it's just taking longer than we want to.Yes, we would like to feel better tomorrow, thank you very much. It's like, so, so, to honor the fact that this takes time, and often if we're not moving quick enough, we say, I'm stuck. And I'm like, it feels like stuck, but let's look at actual progress and sometimes I'll say, are you exactly the same place you were even three months ago.No, Connie, I'm not, you know, I mean, they're like, whatever, but I want to honor the stuck feeling because it is there, but let's not call it actual stuck because that's actually not where we're at. So how did we get here? Catherine, Katherine: we were talking about, Oh, I don't know, but I was really chocked up. Connie: [00:34:00] Good.Good. So I just want to go driving. And Katherine: how do we get there? What is, yeah, what does driving look like? And then how do we, how do we get there? That was the original Connie: question. Good. Okay. So what's thriving? I think that looks different too, for different people. And it's going to look different than it did before.That's the other thing. I think we need to accept and kind of reconcile. In ourself, sometimes it is going to look like like the name of the treat was retreat was laugh again, and it's like eventually laughter needs to be another part of your life again, the ability to laugh hard and laugh freely, but even the laughter and what it's about the texture may feel different than it did before.And that's not all bad. Most people when they are really starting to thrive will say. Of [00:35:00] course, I hate what I had to go through, but I actually like me better now. Mm hmm. What, what bigger success is there than that? To me, that's, and I know that's my story. It took me 10 years in a very dramatic moment. I write an epilogue in my book, a very dramatic moment.For me to go, Oh, I like who I am and not that it was right that it happened, but there's, I think it was evil that what happened to me and it should never happen to anybody, but there was a part of me that said that has made me who I am and my gratitude for that was profound and I find that's pretty consistent and so it's maybe different.And it likely is going to be different, thriving, than what it used to look like. But I also think thriving is going to have greater dimension, and wealth, and color, than it did before. And that, [00:36:00] that's, to me, that's the beauty of suffering handled well. Like you actually get in suffering. I am not Again, don't hear me saying woohoo for suffering No, a lot of it is needless and should never be there and I don't wish it on anyone that said I feel like beauty can come from that and Healing and not just okay.I'm better like, okay. I got over it But a sense of oh who am I now that I really love that I didn't have Parts of me before that are here. Katherine: Yeah. Yeah. It's a, it's a a hurdle to get past this like reality of like, yes, this should have never happened. Yeah. Yes. And, and, and this is a, this is a churchy word, this is a Jesus word, but it's also just a word.I see that rather than like, Oh, justification for what happened or a reason for what happened and rather like a redemption. [00:37:00] Yes. Get to step into. And now we get to claim and we get to say this happened. Yes. But despite it, this is now who I am. Yes. Yes. Resiliency of the survival spirit and the human spirit that is ours to access.Yes. And that abuser or abusive system does not get the final word. Connie: No. We do. That's right. And that where I love that's so funny. I I was thinking I hope she's gonna use the word redemption Because you know the church has Hijacked the word and stolen in many ways and made it its own domain its own territory.It's not There's something beautiful about something that word Yes, they don't own it and for us to say no something could be redeemed something Some beauty could come out of something horrible. And I think that is, that is apart [00:38:00] from and across religious perspective. That's, that's just one of those, that's a, that's an existential life thing.And it's like, let it, let it, let it be there. So, you know, part of, we talked about this at the retreat, Catherine, but part of thriving, first of all, I think, to, we need to see our all or nothing assumptions. Around thriving, we, we often, I think, especially when we're hurting and trying to heal and trying to survive, we see thriving as a light switch.That's going to pop on 1 day. And, oh, now I'm thriving and even as I say that, most of us who live past. Probably 18 years old, we'll say probably doesn't work quite that way, but it's an underlying assumption that it's going to be. All better, that all domains of [00:39:00] life will be thriving at the same time, and that it is a steady, straight line toward thriving.This, this, this, these steps, and you're on it. It is a crazy, twisted, three dimensional graph. And it's, you know, if we're saying straight line on a graph toward thriving, It's a mess. It's a snarled mess to get there. And there are going to be areas, I would venture to say that even the people who are hurting the most listening to this right now have areas of their life that they are actually thriving.They may not be willing to look real carefully at that because it might feel invalidating, which it's not but, but to be able to actually there are certain areas of my life that are kind of on track. I mean, my husband and I started dating [00:40:00] fully recommended six months after I was went through the abuse.It actually was exactly what it should have been for us. Yeah, again, not necessarily recommended. But. We, that part of my life was very beautiful while I was bleeding out arteries in so many other domains of my life. Does that make my time with, you know, my courtship and my, even that has a lot of baggage to it, our dating years, whatever, you know, dating time less valuable?Or less than? No, it was actually quite a shining light. Does it make my other suffering less? No, it was horrific. And so, just to, just to look at that and to say, it's not an all or nothing proposition. And it does to hold that lightly and accept the fact that It's, it's not going to be an [00:41:00] all or nothing where all of a sudden one day life is just going to be all easier and all better.Yeah. Katherine: Yeah. Yeah. And I think I really appreciated that visual picture that you provided us at the retreat where you gave us domains on a piece of paper and it was just like a bunch of different blocks of different domains, family, social life, work life, spiritual life, all these different domains. Yeah.And, and you said something to the effect of you can be thriving and have a few of these domains that aren't thriving. Like you can be thriving in general and then have a few domains that aren't going so well. And that was like a relief to me because I think I pictured thriving as everything is going great all the time.Connie: Right. Well, I have 12. I think of this the cat out. We're talking about I give up 12 domains and these are very flexible. These were [00:42:00] my domains. And I said, I remember saying that retreat and people can say, that's not even a domain for me, or I got different domains. And that's great. But these 12 domains, let me.Let me go through them real quick because I want to kind of talk about this. Is that okay? Katherine: Yeah, and then maybe I could get, if you have like a PDF or something, I can put it in the newsletter. If they, if I remember, I probably won't, but no, I have Connie: it. I have it. I couldn't get that to you. Yeah. So one domain is spiritual health when they're getting, I kind of referred to some of these earlier physical health.Emotional mental health, of course, isn't that great that I'd forget that one emotional mental health. That's the third. And then it in relationships is the domain of family, your significant other friendships. That's huge. And that can include community like we're talking fun and recreation creativity.Excuse me creativity adventure are all part of the fun and recreation and then I have a set that I don't know if anybody else uses, but I [00:43:00] love learning and skill building. I loved I'm a learner my heart. So I love like, what am I doing in that domain? My environment my home, my office, my car.How's that? You know, how are things there in my environment? And then. I've got finances. How are my finances? That's a domain. Work and career. How am I making a living? How's that going? That domain. And then I have a, my last domain is life contribution. And that, that, of course these areas overlap greatly.You know, they're not separate, but just for the sake of sorting. So my life contribution, what do I do just to contribute to this world? You know, and those are ways you do it in other domains as well, but I have it for me because well, I'm in a better place Yes, and I'm an Enneagram three So I forgive me even now so it just [00:44:00] is so when I look at all of these domains I have never That I recall in my whole life on a scale from 0 to 10, 10 being best ever, 5 being neutral, 0 being in the toilet.I have never been above between a 6 and a 10 in all these domains at one given time. There's always a path, there's always, it's a Katherine: neutral. But you would say you're still thriving. You would say. Yes. Yeah. Even if that's not, not everything is a Connie: 10. Exactly. I, I've got a domain right now that is chronically painful.There's some stuff family wise, chronically, like, ow, like if it, if it gets to a 3. 5, it's a good day in that domain. So it's a painful domain. I want to honor that. Like, yeah, that is [00:45:00] real and it hurts. And it doesn't hurt less because several other parts of my life are actually above six and, and thriving.And so just to give that example, I think about a time in my life when I was going through cancer where multiple domains Were like, finances, physical health, career, trying to keep together a private practice, all these domains were like in distress. And the friend domain was just freaky rich. It was just like, Oh, I would just add such gratitude around that.So a lot of domains in that time of life, it was. Below a five, but the, the upside was the friendships were just so beautiful and good. So I guess. I want to take away the illusion that thriving means everything is in the positive. [00:46:00] Katherine: Yeah. As we wrap up, if someone is listening to this and they're like, Okay, I think I'm curling out of that survival, and I'm, you know, my head's kind of coming up and I'm able to just maybe see a little bit of sunshine.What, what are some recommendations, resources that you would recommend to that person to start moving towards coming out of that survival space?Connie: One of the first things I can think of, and there again, I don't want this to be triggering because it can have some baggage with it, but this is brain science. This is not religion. And that is gratitude. I think reinforcement of what is actually going well. First of all, to allow validation for all the stuff that's hurting, like, we have this Western mindset that it's got to be one cancels [00:47:00] out the other.It's both and, that's life. But to go with gratitude, no shoulds here, what should I be grateful for? Get that out of your head. But what are you actually grateful for and if you're moving toward that thriving, I think that can really reinforce it I have a practice every morning of writing anywhere from six to ten things that i'm thankful for right then no shoulds That's the big rule.Should I be grateful for that? If I have to ask the question, it's not going on the list like So, no, but what am I actually, and some days that means I am actually grateful for a warm house. It's supposed to have a cold snap here in the Northwest over the next couple of days. And I'm like, okay, I actually am grateful for this warm house.Great. So to, to keep facilitating that, that's one of the first things that comes to mind. And voicing those neural pathways, a traumatized brain has deeply rutted, [00:48:00] painful and negative neural pathways. It just has such, there's such ruts of just the anxiety of waiting for the next shoe to fall, to, to, for the next bomb to go off, and to start saying, I'm going to reinforce.We're not getting rid of the risk of hard things happening, it's real. But to say, actually at the same time, these positive things are very true. They're just as true as the negative. This is a little quote fight I get in with my clients sometimes. Okay, it's not a fight. But to say, you know, you're saying all this negative is true.I agree, it is. And even the possibilities of negative are the truth. I can't say that wouldn't happen. But what about all the positive as well? It's an integrating of those rather than it's not Pollyanna. It's not rose colored glasses. It's an integrating [00:49:00] of actual reality and our brains say, Nope, only the negative is true.And I'm like, let's challenge that because that eventually becomes unhelpful. For our brains, and so somehow reinforcing telling people about the positive, the ones who are also validating the negative, not ones who are pushing you, Katherine: you're going to celebrate with you and can hold the both Connie: hand with you.Exactly, without toxic positivity, we do not want that, but so to keep moving there, I think social, you know, we talked about the challenges of. Friendships and community both of those. And I think those are a little different because you can have really good individual friendships without a full sense of robust community.Yeah, but those things help reinforce positive brain function. I mean, we just do better. unisolated. We do better connected with other humans. And so those are some, and there again, be gentle, [00:50:00] take time. It's just not going to happen overnight. And that's, it's a sometimes grueling road back, but worth it.It's worth the time and effort to say, Okay, well that friendship didn't go exactly like I wanted. I'm going to keep trying to create and develop positive connections. And I think also we're talking about spiritual, you cannot push this, but I want to give hope. I'm 30 years down. And so I feel like I have this perspective and I started what they called deconstructing 20 years ago.I didn't know what was happening to me, my spiritual life, my brain, nobody had a name for it back then. I was just freaking out going, I'm pulling back, I'm pulling back. Is this bad? Oh my gosh, am I going to hell? Ah, you know, and I started. Questioning deeply all this stuff. So I've been on this process a long time and there are months and years that you are going to live in limbo in that in, and it's, it is [00:51:00] so damn uncomfortable.It is. It is so uncomfortable and it is so essential that you do not rush through it. Yes, cut the process short. Yeah, but let me say sit with it in integrity you do finally come out on the other side not not with certainty I don't think certainty, but I think I can say with some solid ground to stand on I think that's a better way to put it just personally whatever that is for you you start If you don't circumvent the process, if you don't, you know, truncate the process, then you can move on eventually to go, Oh, I think I'm finding some solid ground.For me, that was years of limbo. It was unpleasant. It isn't for everybody. My brain works slower. It had several decades to rewrite. So it took a long time, but it was so worth it to say, no, you are, there's hope for [00:52:00] some solid ground existentially slash spiritually, not they're going to, I'm not, I'm not even interested in certainty anymore but a certain definition of who I am and how I relate to life in the divine.Katherine: Absolutely. Absolutely. Oh, I feel like this, this conversation has been kind of like a, it feels like a little pep talk. I feel inspired and yeah, just, encouraged. And I want this episode to end January spiritual abuse awareness month as just kind of like hope, but not hope of trying to put pressure on anyone to be here, but just to say.One day, one day, you're gonna be able to laugh again. One day, this limbo, five years, ten years, whatever, you're gonna look back and it's gonna be over, like this part will be over, or this, this, this. Season of Connie: this part will be over. [00:53:00] Yes, exactly. Katherine: Right. Yes. This has been so wonderful. I always, always enjoy talking to you as Connie: Catherine.Yes. Katherine: And the end of the episode, let folks know how to get in touch with you or find. Stuff that you are, you are working on. Connie: Yes. So let me get my book out. So I remember the exact title. The title traumatized by spiritual abuse, courage, hope and freedom for survivors. That's it. And then another subtitle is discover the cultures and systems of religious abuse and reclaim your personal power.So that's on the front of the book. That gives a bit, a bit of a Idea a range of what is in the book and get it on Amazon. So Connie Baker my website has almost. Everything you need on there Connie A. Baker, C O N N I E A as in Ann, my middle name, then baker, B A K E R dot com, Connie A. Baker dot com.It's got resources, videos, [00:54:00] probably has this podcast, a podcast I was on before with you. So, resources for people to listen to or look up and, yeah, I think those are the main I'm I'm on Facebook. Come on. Oh, I do have here. This is important. I do have a group of probably I think it's around right above 1000 people right now and online private.Yeah, I didn't. Oh, good. Yeah. And and I post regularly. And just to right now I'm giving a lot of questions for people to process their story. So that is overcoming Yeah, yeah, yeah. Overcoming religious abuse community. And that's on Facebook and I'm also on Instagram and Connie a baker is usually the handles on those to Katherine: find it.Yes. All right. Thank you so much. I will link as many things as possible in the show notes for folks. And thank you so much for being here and Connie: always, always a privilege. Thank you, Catherine. Thank you.

Arif and James are back to review the loss to the Bengals for episode 500. We look back at 10 years of shows, talk all about THAT interception, and question why there are no drops all of the sudden for the Vikings receivers.    Ten years. Five hundred episodes. Seven live shows. Eight Hell Leagues. One Laquon Treadwell jersey. A few baggies of homemade candy corn. A terrible body pillow.   Thank you.    Please send any questions or feedback to  or tweet to @norsecodeDN.   If you like our show please donate to   We have merch! You can visit our shop at:   Also a special thank you to DrawPlayDave for our logo and merchandise designs! You can follow him @drawplaydave and visit his main comic page here:

Are you ready to challenge your perceptions of power, privilege, and responsibility? In this episode of the Beauty of Conflict, Susan and CrisMarie sit down with Jason Patent to talk about leadership, power dynamics, and inclusivity, subjects he dives into in his book, "Humanly Possible: A New Model of Leadership for a More Inclusive World." He discusses the nuanced dimensions of power, emphasizing the responsibility of privilege, addressing societal complexities, and highlighting the crucial role of top leadership for successful inclusivity. Listen to this episode on the nuances of privilege, intentionality, and creating inclusive workplaces with Jason Patent! For the full transcript, show notes, and resources, visit us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thriveinc.com