Podcasts about meditating

We are fortunate to have the opportunity to discipline our minds—have this opportunity early in the morning to focus on one thing that's all-important, leaving beside everything else with no other consideration whatsoever. This is a luxury, because most people are harassed 24 hours a day by various desires, thoughts, anxieties, and worries. But we don't have that, because we know that just by meditating on the name of Kṛṣṇa, everything else is perfectly achieved in life—like watering the root of a tree. So now, let's take that benediction we've been given to focus solely on Kṛṣṇa's name. Consider any other thoughts that come knocking at your door to be intruders, and just tell them that you are busy right now. Mercilessly leave them out in the cold, and continue in the warmth of chanting the holy names of the Lord. (00:56) ------------------------------------------------------------ To connect with His Grace Vaiśeṣika Dāsa, please visit https://www.fanthespark.com/next-steps/ask-vaisesika-dasa/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=launch2025 https://vaisesikadasayatra.blogspot.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------ Add to your wisdom literature collection: https://iskconsv.com/book-store/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=launch2025 https://www.bbtacademic.com/books/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=launch2025 https://thefourquestionsbook.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=launch2025 ------------------------------------------------------------ Join us live on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FanTheSpark/ Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sound-bhakti/id1132423868 For the latest videos, subscribe https://www.youtube.com/@FanTheSpark For the latest in SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/fan-the-spark ------------------------------------------------------------ #japajolt #makejapagreatagain #mantrameditation #spiritualawakening #soul #spiritualexperience #spiritualpurposeoflife #spiritualgrowthlessons #secretsofspirituality #vaisesikaprabhu #vaisesikadasa #vaisesikaprabhulectures #spirituality #bhaktiyoga #krishna #spiritualpurposeoflife #krishnaspirituality #spiritualusachannel #whybhaktiisimportant #whyspiritualityisimportant #vaisesika #spiritualconnection #thepowerofspiritualstudy #selfrealization #spirituallectures #spiritualstudy #spiritualquestions #spiritualquestionsanswered #trendingspiritualtopics #fanthespark #spiritualpowerofmeditation #spiritualteachersonyoutube #spiritualhabits #spiritualclarity #bhagavadgita #srimadbhagavatam #spiritualbeings #kttvg #keepthetranscendentalvibrationgoing #spiritualpurpose

Come Out of Babylon and Return to God's Ways | KIB 551 DESCRIPTION COME OUT OF BABYLON AND RETURN TO GOD'S WAYS What happens when believers stop fighting the Word of God and simply begin asking: "Father, what are Your ways?" In this special Feast of Tabernacles edition of Kingdom Intelligence Briefing, Dr. Michael Lake and Mary Lou Lake speak from the heart about their journey of learning to leave Babylon's patterns behind and increasingly align their lives with the Kingdom of God. The Feast of Tabernacles provides the backdrop for an important question: Are we allowing Scripture to define our Christianity—or are we interpreting Scripture through traditions and cultural assumptions we inherited from Babylon? Dr. Lake examines the biblical feasts as God's appointed times—divine rehearsals that point toward the work of Messiah. The spring feasts reveal what Christ accomplished in His first coming, while the fall feasts prophetically anticipate events associated with His return, His Kingdom, and ultimately the new heaven and new earth. Pasted text The discussion also confronts the historical process through which portions of Christianity became increasingly separated from their Hebraic foundations and absorbed practices from surrounding cultures. But this episode is NOT a call to religious legalism. It is a call to return to the Word. Dr. Lake explains the biblical concept of Torah as the loving instruction of the Father. Rather than viewing God's commandments through the harshness associated with Roman law, believers should understand God's instructions as revealing the pathway He established for His people. That produces one of the central principles of KIB 551: We cannot expect Kingdom results while deliberately walking according to the ways of another kingdom. Repentance realigns us with God. Obedience closes doors to the enemy. The Word renews our minds. And the Holy Spirit progressively teaches believers how to walk according to the Kingdom into which Christ has brought them. Pasted text Dr. Lake puts the principle powerfully: "You cannot outgive your disobedience." Kingdom life cannot be reduced to formulas, offerings, religious rituals, or outward appearances. God desires obedience flowing from faith and love. As believers leave Babylon, repent, and align themselves with Scripture, they progressively close doors through which the enemy has operated and learn how to walk in the blessings and freedom of God's Kingdom. Pasted text Mary Lou also shares a deeply personal message for believers who are exhausted, grieving, sick, or walking through overwhelming circumstances: LET GOD CARRY YOU. There are seasons when believers reach the end of their own strength. Surrender can be difficult—especially for someone who has experienced betrayal, trauma, disappointment, or loss. Yet surrendering ourselves into God's hands can become the beginning of restoration. Sometimes faith means standing. Sometimes faith means fighting. And sometimes faith means allowing the Father to carry us through something we cannot carry ourselves through. Pasted text KIB 551 also addresses sanctification. Maturity does not mean that temptation somehow ceases to exist. Rather, as believers grow closer to God, they increasingly recognize that sin simply costs too much. Why trade the presence of God for momentary pleasure? Why descend again into a valley from which God has already brought us? Why reopen doors Christ has helped us close? There are pleasures in the presence of God that Babylon cannot reproduce. Pasted text The episode concludes with perhaps its clearest statement of purpose: We do not obey God to make Him accept us. We obey Him because He has already accepted us in Christ. Because He loved us and gave Himself for us, our response is gratitude, surrender, obedience, and love. This Feast of Tabernacles, may the peace of God fill your home. May healing come to bodies and emotions. And may the Holy Spirit continue leading the remnant out of Babylon and deeper into the ways of the Kingdom. Pasted text Key Scriptures and Biblical Themes Leviticus 23:41 — The Feast of Tabernacles as an enduring appointed time. Zechariah 14:16–19 — The Feast of Tabernacles during Messiah's reign. Joshua 1:8 — Meditating upon and obeying God's Word. John 15:5 — Christ as the Vine and believers as the branches. Deuteronomy 28:1–68 — Blessings and curses associated with covenant faithfulness and disobedience. Hebrews 12:18–29 — Sinai, Zion, obedience, judgment, and "our God is a consuming fire." Romans 6:16–18 — Slavery to sin contrasted with obedience and righteousness. Proverbs 18:21 — Life and death in the power of the tongue. The transcript particularly emphasizes Leviticus 23:41 and the Hebrew concept of olam while discussing the enduring significance of the Feast of Tabernacles. Pasted text CHAPTERS / TIMELINE These timestamps come directly from the transcript's timestamp markers, with chapter headings describing the discussion beginning at or near those markers. 00:00 — Biblical Life TV: Empowering the Remnant 01:29 — Welcome to KIB 551 01:53 — A Special Feast of Tabernacles Conversation 02:13 — Encouragement During Difficult Times 04:58 — Mind War, Psychological Operations & New Age Thinking 08:48 — Self-Talk, Faith Teaching & New Age Parallels 12:09 — Healing, Trust & Learning to Surrender to God 16:03 — How Should Christians Approach the Biblical Feasts? 18:58 — The Feasts Are Divine Rehearsals 19:36 — Spring Feasts, Fall Feasts & Messiah 20:43 — Leviticus 23:41: "A Statute Forever" 22:38 — Tabernacles & the Millennial Reign 26:54 — Christianity, Paganism & Religious Tradition 31:36 — Polycarp, Passover & the Early Church 34:38 — Deconstructionism vs. Biblical Truth 38:02 — Culture Does Not Redefine God's Word 40:13 — Torah: The Loving Instruction of the Father 43:49 — "You Cannot Outgive Your Disobedience" 44:10 — Obedience Opens Doors to God's Kingdom 46:00 — Avoiding Legalism in the Hebraic Roots Movement 50:41 — Babylon's System Turns Everything Toward Self 51:33 — Strengthening Believers Going Through Difficult Times 52:19 — "Let God Carry You" 54:11 — Believing God for Healing 54:59 — Dr. Lake's Personal Healing Testimony 57:52 — Sanctification & Why Sin Becomes Too Expensive 59:47 — Experiencing the Peace of God 1:01:12 — Health, Food & Biblical Dietary Principles 1:05:48 — Obedience Even When We Do Not Understand 1:07:45 — Stop Fighting the Word of God 1:08:04 — Obedience From Love, Not Religious Legalism 1:08:33 — "Because He Loved Me, I Changed My Life" 1:09:42 — Biblical Life TV Partner Message CALL TO ACTION Babylon continually asks us to define good and evil for ourselves. The Kingdom asks a different question: What has God said? The goal is not religious legalism. The goal is not earning salvation. The goal is learning to walk with the God who has already redeemed us through Jesus Christ. Examine the traditions you inherited. Examine your priorities. Examine what you allow into your home. Examine your theology. And compare everything with the Word of God. When Scripture reveals something that needs to change, do not fight the Word. Repent. Realign. Obey. And keep walking deeper into the Kingdom. If KIB 551 has encouraged or challenged you, please LIKE this video, SUBSCRIBE to Biblical Life TV, and SHARE this episode with someone who is learning how to come out of Babylon and walk more fully in God's ways. COMMENT BELOW: What has God shown you from His Word that required you to change something you had previously believed or practiced? PARTNER WITH BIBLICAL LIFE TV Kingdom Intelligence Briefing and Biblical Life TV are made possible through the prayers and faithful support of our partners around the world. Our purpose remains to provide deep biblical teaching that will inform, strengthen, and empower the remnant for the days ahead. The program itself describes this mission as helping believers become empowered by the Word of God to fulfill His purposes in these last days. Pasted text If Biblical Life TV has strengthened your walk with God, please prayerfully consider partnering with the ministry. Biblical Life P.O. Box 160 Seymour, Missouri 65746-0160 Online giving is available through the ministry's official resources. Kingdom Intelligence Briefing Thank you to everyone who prays, gives, shares these programs, and stands with us as we work to prepare the remnant.

Elder Micah Hood exhorts the ARC congregation from Luke 24:13-34.

I read daily devotionals on a weekly bases

Robert Morgan will join us to identify key passages from Scripture to help believer’s face life’s challenges and practical instruction on how to get the most out of biblical meditation. Robert’s approach connects each of these passages to real-life scenarios, offering practical and spiritual encouragement for Christians seeking to rely on God’s strength in every aspect of their lives. Join us as we “set our minds on things above”.Become a Parshall Partner: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/inthemarket/partnersSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Send us Fan MailSelf-medicating is often just a symptom of something deeper. In this episode, my guest Marie, explains why real transformation begins when we stop chasing control and start rebuilding trust, self-love, and inner peace from the inside out.If you have ever felt trapped in anxiety, over-caretaking, emotional reactivity, or habits that numb rather than heal, this conversation will resonate. You'll discover: Why so many people get stuck in unconscious habit loops How breathwork can help interrupt anxiety, panic, and emotional reactivity Why self-awareness and self-compassion are trainable practices How a holistic mind-body-spirit approach can support healing What Marie's “Take Five” method is and why five minutes a day can make a differenceAt the heart of this episode is a simple but powerful idea: you do not have to keep living on autopilot. When you understand your patterns, breathe with intention, and reconnect with what genuinely brings you joy, you can stop reacting to life and begin moving through it with greater freedom.Essential listening for anyone ready to break old cycles, calm their nervous system, and rediscover inner peace.Support the show

Bonus episodes on the PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/NeuroticNews This week we talk about the cultural differences between Europe and the Gold Coast, Australian TV (again), How Pauline Hanson got into politics and when Rathy was kicked out of the pokies for meditating.

Hello Beautiful, I'm so grateful you're here with me. The peaceful sound of flowing water creates a soothing backdrop for relaxation and rest. These calming sleep sounds help quiet distractions, reduce stress, and encourage deep, uninterrupted sleep. Perfect for meditation, studying, mindfulness, and bedtime. Love,

Having a consistent practice is a good thing, but it's not the only thing.  Today I share my own experience with the recent time when my practice became irregular. THANKS FOR LISTENING! Become a Super-Fan of the Show If this conversation inspired you, please share it using the social media buttons on the page. Be a part of the show!

In this Rich Reflections session, Rich steps into the energy of New York City for an experiment in presence: can you find stillness in one of the most stimulating places in the world? Recording from a park near Hudson Yards, Rich begins with five minutes of breathing before moving through a series of questions designed to create greater clarity about our lives. Against the sounds and movement of Manhattan, he reflects on gratitude, observation, curiosity, hope, travel, and the seemingly insignificant details that can reveal something larger about ourselves and the world around us. Recorded on the 25th anniversary of September 11th, Rich remembers experiencing the attacks as a seventh grader in rural Wisconsin and considers how his perspective has changed over time. He reflects on the sense of national unity he remembers from the aftermath and asks listeners to consider their own memories—or, for younger listeners, what September 11th means to them today. From there, the session follows curiosity wherever it leads: Thomas Jefferson, the history of coffee, walking through New York, travel, and Rich's new Ads in New York book project. He explores advertising as a cultural time capsule and considers the value of becoming a better observer—noticing the overlooked details that tell us something about the larger human story. This is an episode about getting out of our heads and back into the world. What gives us hope? When do we feel completely present? What obscure interests make us who we are? And what are we genuinely excited to experience next? Because if you can sit still, breathe, and reflect in New York City, maybe you can do it anywhere. Questions in this session: 1. What are we grateful for? 2. Where were we on September 11th, 2001? What do we think about it now? If you weren't born or don't remember it, what stands out to you about September 11th culturally, societally, or in relation to your family? 3. What—or who—have we been curious about learning about lately? 4. What is something most people would consider uninteresting that you find interesting? 5. What place would we like to experience next? What's next on our travel or curiosity list—even if we experience it through film, YouTube, or learning rather than physically traveling? 6. When was the last time we felt completely present? 7. What gives us hope? 8. What is a small nuance in our life that others wouldn't know about, but that is personally meaningful to us? 9. What are we curious about recently? 10. What are we energized for in the next week?

Quiet Before the Lord: The Keys to Meditation. We are joined by Robert Morgan (Author, Pastor). Topics discussed include: What is Meditation? Why is it Important? The Basics of Meditation. Things to Meditate On. Long Term Effects of Meditating.

Quiet Before the Lord: The Keys to Meditation. We are joined by Robert Morgan (Author, Pastor). Topics discussed include: What is Meditation? Why is it Important? The Basics of Meditation. Things to Meditate On. Long Term Effects of Meditating.

Many people feel like they don't have time to meditate, especially during a busy commute. But what if that commute became part of your practice? Today on Zen Commuter, we'll talk about how to use your car as a space for mindfulness. While safety must always be the priority, there are ways to incorporate stillness and presence even while driving. Whether you're parked or driving, there are ways to become still. What we'll cover: When it's safe and not safe to engage in meditative techniques while in your car 3 important things to note when meditating in your parked car Turning red lights and traffic into mindfulness bells THANKS FOR LISTENING! Become a Super-Fan of the Show If this conversation inspired you, please share it using the social media buttons on the page. Be a part of the show!

This sermon explored the importance of meditating deeply on God's Word rather than simply hearing or reading it. Drawing from Jeremiah 15–16, it emphasized allowing God's Word to be absorbed, reflected upon, and lived out daily. Believers are encouraged to continually meditate on Scripture so that it shapes their hearts, minds, and actions.

If I could tell everyone in the world to try one thing that would make the biggest difference in their life it would be: start meditating. Meditation has had the single greatest impact on my life out of anything I've ever done. It unlocks inner peace, helps you discover stillness, reconnects you with your true essence (spirit) and helps you to be a better human making different choices.BUT a lot of people are intimidated by it, or picture someone with their legs crossed floating above the ground. The truth is though, it's extremely simple to start meditating and today we're talking about how you can start by the end of the day.OOOOOO I'm excited for you!Send me an email!theintothelightpodcast@gmail.comWatch the Podcast on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@theintothelightpodcastConnect With Me!YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HarrisonKingInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/harrisonkingofficial/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Spiritual maturity grows from a mind and heart shaped by the word of God. Meditating on Scripture is more than reading for information, it is dwelling on what God has said until it impacts the way we think and behave. Among the spiritual disciplines, this is the one that most directly places God's truth before us and gives the Holy Spirit something to work with in our hearts and minds. This weekend, we will explore the discipline of meditating on Scripture and how it moves us toward maturity.Support the show

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Why do so many preachers talk about "backsliding" Christians? A lot of my friends embrace God's grace but hesitate when it comes to freedom from tithing. What are your thoughts? How do you meditate on God's law the way that Psalm 1 encourages? And what about when you get busy?

The Bible gives us some interesting instructions. It tells us to meditate on the written word so we can discover God's will for our life. But how does meditating on scripture give us "now" instructions to have success in our calling? Let's dig into this concept. __________ Romans 12:1-2 KJV, John 16:13 KJV, John 14:17 KJV, 1 Thessalonians 5:23 KJV __________ Partner with Us: https://churchforentrepreneurs.com/partner Connect with Us: https://churchforentrepreneurs.com __________    

The Book of Psalms is a truly unique place in God's Word. Our questions, sin struggles, and disappointments begin to take on a new God-centered perspective. Meditating on the Psalms is not just therapeutic. It's redemptive.

Andrea Samadi shares her personal resting heart rate data to show why measuring over time matters more than fixating on a single score. She explains how trends reveal stress, recovery, and adaptation, and why comparing yourself to your own baseline is the most useful approach. Learn practical steps to measure consistently, contextualize changes, experiment with one behavior, and use your physiological data to make intentional improvements in sleep, recovery, and performance. BONUS EPISODE 3: ON THIS EPISODE, WE'LL COVER ✔ What resting heart rate can reveal about stress, recovery, and adaptation over time ✔ The story hidden in my own data — from a high of 57 bpm in February to 53 bpm in August ✔ Why the six-month trend matters — and what my 2% lower average may be telling me ✔ How stress and training load can show up in your physiology before you consciously recognize it ✔ Why recovery and nervous-system regulation matter for building a more resilient baseline ✔ How to find your own RHR baseline instead of comparing yourself with someone else ✔ How to look for deviations and patterns across weeks and months—not individual days ✔ How to connect RHR with sleep, HRV, recovery, training, stress, and life events ✔ How to run your own personal experiment: change one variable, measure, and see what happens ✔ The bigger lesson: What gets measured over time can reveal a story you couldn't see day to day. Welcome back to the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast, where we bridge neuroscience, social and emotional learning, and human performance so we can create measurable improvements in our well-being, achievement, leadership, productivity, and results. I'm Andrea Samadi, and if you've been following along through Season 16, you'll know that we've been building what I call The Brain's Operating System for Human Performance—a neuroscience-based framework designed to help us understand how the different systems of the brain and body work together to influence how we learn, adapt, connect, lead, and ultimately how we perform. We are currently in Phase 3 where we are covering Movement, Learning and Cognition. If you just finished Episode 405[i] with Dr. Kristen Holmes, you know we've been looking at recovery as an essential part of our Movement Loop. Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity. And Kristen's work has reinforced something I've learned after years of tracking my own physiology: What gets measured gets improved. But this week, I wanted to dive into my own personal data to show us something I think is easy to miss: Sometimes what gets measured over time reveals a story you simply couldn't see day to day. When we're looking at a wearable every morning, it's easy to become focused on today's number. Today's recovery score. Today's HRV. Today's resting heart rate. Was it higher? Was it lower? But one number—or even one week—rarely tells us very much about the direction we're actually moving. It's when we begin to zoom out that patterns emerge. And that's exactly what happened when I looked more closely at my resting heart rate this year. What initially looked like a collection of numbers began to tell a much bigger story about stress, recovery, consistency, and adaptation. So my hope for this episode isn't that you compare your resting heart rate to mine. Your numbers will be different. My hope is that this episode encourages you to become curious about your own data. Maybe you track sleep. Maybe it's HRV. Resting heart rate. Recovery. Exercise. Blood pressure. Steps. Or even something as simple as your energy, mood, or ability to focus. Take one metric and zoom out. Look at three months. Six months. Maybe even a year. And instead of asking, “Is today's number good or bad?” Ask a different question: “What is the trend that I'm seeing here, trying to tell me?” Is something improving? Is something slowly moving in the wrong direction? Does your physiology change during periods of higher stress? (like you will see mine did). Can you see what happens when you sleep more consistently, exercise differently, recover better, or change one habit? Because sometimes the most valuable insight isn't found in today's score. It's hidden in the pattern. And once you can see the pattern, you have information you can actually use. That's really the purpose of sharing my personal data with you today. Not to say, “Here's what worked for me, so you should do exactly the same thing.” But to show you what can happen when we become students of our own physiology. We measure. Find the tool that works best for you. We notice. Patterns…ups and downs. We experiment. We become intentional with our behaviors to change/improve the numbers. We adjust and try something new/different. And then we measure again. Because ultimately, what gets measured gets improved—but what gets measured over time can reveal the story that you tell you more than just a bunch of numbers. And sometimes that story shows us exactly where our next opportunity for change might be. And that's exactly what happened with my resting heart rate. Earlier this year, I watched my monthly average climb to 56...and then 57 beats per minute. You can see my data in the show notes. Sept and October were even, at 54, and then something happened in November that took my RHR up, and it kept climbing.  I know what was happening in those months to cause the increase. And I went all out to protect my recovery. I worked on rest, hydration, extra exercise, and recovery sessions. Then it began coming down. in March 54 in April 53 The 56 in May isn't the most accurate representation of what was happening with my data, as we travelled internationally and there were 5 days my whoop didn't calculate my score correctly (something to do with the change in time zones) so I'm not going to say that I was stressed out during a relaxing vacation. But something happened that caught my attention. You can see it with the graphics in the show notes. My newest six-month WHOOP average dropped from 55 to 54 beats per minute—2% lower than the previous six months. This NEW result was highlighted in GREEN for me to notice the improvement. For the first time in this story, the baseline itself had moved. And that's what we're going to dive into today. Because this episode isn't really about whether 53 is a good resting heart rate. It's about something much more useful: Do you know your baseline with YOUR RHR—and do you know which direction it's moving? Even better, if you can forsee that it will be moving up, like I knew it was going to in January/February, do you have strategies in place to buffer the stress, and keep this number as close as you can to your baseline? Let's dive into this bonus episode. The Story Behind My Resting Heart Rate: Do You Know Yours? There's a number I've been watching for the past year. I watched it raise higher (when I'm stressed) and go lower when I'm doing all the right things to rest and recover. When I zoom out and look at this number over the past year, it tells a fascinating story about my fitness, recovery, stress, and the way my body is adapting. That number is my resting heart rate. And today I want to ask you: Do you know yours? Because one of the biggest lessons I've learned from nearly five years of tracking my physiology is something we've talked about throughout this podcast: What gets measured gets improved. But I think I need to add something to that. What gets measured over time reveals the story. And my newest data makes that clearer than ever. PART 1 — WHAT IS RESTING HEART RATE? Resting heart rate, or RHR, is simply the number of times your heart beats per minute while your body is at rest. Normal Ranges and Fitness[ii] Average adults: 60 to 100 bpm. Active adults: 55 to 85 bpm. Athletes: 40 to 60 bpm, because their heart muscle is strong and pumps blood with ease For adults, resting heart rate varies considerably between individuals. Fitness, genetics, age, sleep, stress, illness, medications, hydration, alcohol, temperature and training load can all influence it. So I'm not interested in comparing my resting heart rate with someone else's. I'm interested in comparing me with me. That's where wearable data becomes useful. Instead of asking: “Is 53 good?” I'm asking: “What is happening to my baseline over time?” And that distinction matters. PART 2 — MY RHR STORY BEGAN WITH A RISE When I first looked at this data, I focused on January and February. My monthly resting heart rate had climbed: January: 56 bpm. February: 57 bpm. Those numbers weren't alarming. I was experiencing higher levels of stress than usual at that time, and I was even prepared for the stress. But relative to my baseline, (55 bpm) the rise caught my attention. And that's an important distinction. A wearable isn't diagnosing why something happened. It can't look at 57 and tell me: “Andrea, this is stress.” But it can show me that something has changed. Then I can look at the rest of my life. How am I sleeping? How am I training? What's my stress level? Am I recovering? What has changed? That's when data becomes feedback. I was ready to implement some stress reduction strategies to get my RHR and nervous system back to its baseline. PART 3 — THEN THE PATTERN CHANGED After February, here's what happened: March: 54. April: 53. May: 56 (International Trip impacted this data) June: 53. July: 55. August: 53. And I love this part of the story because it wasn't a perfectly straight line. My RHR didn't simply go: 57...56...55...54...53. Real physiology rarely works like that. There were fluctuations. May went back to 56. July went to 55. But my resting heart rate kept returning to 53. April: 53. June: 53. August: 53. That's when I began wondering whether I was seeing something more meaningful than a few good months. And now I have another piece of evidence. PART 4 — THE NEW SIX-MONTH RESULT My newest WHOOP six-month report covers February 23 through August 21, 2026. And this is where the story gets interesting. My previous six-month average resting heart rate was: 55 bpm. My newest six-month average is: 54 bpm. WHOOP shows that as: 2% lower than the previous six months. One beat per minute doesn't sound dramatic. But I'm not looking for dramatic. I'm looking for adaptation. Something to show me that my body responded to the extra recovery that I was implementing to buffer the higher stress. For the first time in this particular story, the six-month average itself has moved down. And that means I'm no longer looking only at a few isolated low readings. The trend is beginning to move. PART 5 — THE AVERAGE WAS HIDING THE STORY This may be my favorite lesson from this entire experiment. Earlier, when I looked at a different six-month window, my average RHR was 55 bpm. And the previous six months? Also 55. If I had stopped there, I could have concluded: Nothing changed. But underneath that average was a changing pattern. My RHR had risen to 57 in February. This makes sense to me when I glance at the data. Then it repeatedly returned to 53 with my focus being on rest/recovery. And eventually the rolling six-month average moved from 55 to 54. This is why one measurement rarely tells the whole story. Trends matter. And sometimes your body is changing before the average catches up. PART 6 — 57 TO 53 There's another way to look at the data. February was my highest monthly average in this January–August period: 57 bpm. August is: 53 bpm. That's approximately 7% lower than that February high. I want to be careful with this number because I'm comparing two monthly endpoints—not two six-month averages. So I wouldn't call this a 7% improvement in my overall cardiovascular health. But it is another signal inside the larger pattern. What was happening in February? What is currently happening in August? And when multiple signals begin pointing in the same direction, (showing an improvement) I'm  paying attention. PART 7 — WHAT CHANGED? This is where I think self-experimentation becomes powerful. I didn't respond to the higher numbers by simply exercising harder. I've spent this year becoming much more intentional about recovery and regulation. Sleep. Daily movement. Zone 2 work. Meditation. Hydration. Infrared sauna. Red-light therapy. Paying attention to training strain. And increasingly, listening to what my physiology is telling me instead of automatically pushing through fatigue. I've also been experimenting with removing alcohol at different times this year, and the changes I've seen in recovery, HRV, sleep stress and resting heart rate have given me another variable to continue watching. I can't take this dataset and say: “This one behavior caused my RHR to fall.” There are too many variables. But I can say: The environment surrounding my physiology changed—and my trend changed with it. That's worth paying attention to. PART 8 — WHY DOES A LOWER RHR MATTER? In many people, particularly when associated with aerobic fitness, a lower resting heart rate can reflect a heart that is able to pump blood efficiently with fewer beats at rest. Training can increase stroke volume—the amount of blood pumped with each heartbeat. That means the heart may not need to beat as frequently to deliver the same cardiac output at rest. Autonomic regulation also plays a role. The sympathetic nervous system helps mobilize us for action. The parasympathetic nervous system supports rest-and-recovery processes. Resting heart rate reflects influences from both, along with many other physiological factors. That's why I don't view RHR as a standalone score. I view it as one piece of my physiological dashboard. RHR. HRV. Sleep. Recovery. Training load. And, most importantly: How I actually feel. PART 9 — THIS CONNECTS DIRECTLY TO THE MOVEMENT LOOP Remember the Movement Loop we've been building in Phase 3: Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity. My RHR data brings us directly back to the part of the loop I don't want us to overlook: Recovery → Adaptation. Exercise provides the stimulus. But we don't become fitter during the stimulus itself. The body needs an opportunity to respond to that stimulus. To repair. To replenish. To adapt. And eventually, that adaptation may become visible in our trends. That's why recovery isn't the opposite of performance. Recovery is part of the process that makes performance possible. PART 10 — THE BIGGER LESSON This episode isn't really about whether your resting heart rate should be 53. Mine doesn't need to be yours. Your number might be completely different. The question is: Do you know your baseline? And more importantly: Do you know which direction it's moving? What increases it? What decreases it? Because your physiology is constantly responding to the way you're living. Training. Sleeping. Recovering. Working. Traveling. Eating. Drinking. Managing stress. And sometimes those changes are happening quietly beneath the surface. Until you measure them. PART 11 — HOW TO IMPLEMENT THIS IN YOUR OWN LIFE So now I want to turn this over to you. I've shown you my resting heart rate story. What's yours? And you don't need five years of WHOOP data to begin looking for it. You just need enough information to establish your baseline, and then you need to become curious about what causes that baseline to change. Here's how I would start. STEP 1 — FIND A WAY TO MEASURE YOUR RESTING HEART RATE CONSISTENTLY First, find the measurement tool that works for you. Maybe that's WHOOP. Maybe it's an Apple Watch, Garmin, Oura Ring, Fitbit, or another wearable. Or maybe you're tracking your resting heart rate another way. The specific device isn't the most important part of this experiment. You can even just count your pulse beats that you get in one minute while resting. Just stay consistent as you measure. If you're going to look for a trend, you want to compare measurements collected under reasonably consistent conditions. We're not trying to find the lowest number we can possibly produce. We're trying to understand our normal pattern. STEP 2 — LEARN YOUR BASELINE Next, don't start by asking: “Is my resting heart rate good?” Start with: “What is normal for me?” Look at your data over time. If you have it, look at your last month. Then three months. Six months. And eventually a year. What number—or range—does your RHR tend to return to? For me, I knew that my baseline was somewhere around the mid-50s. That's why 56 and 57 caught my attention. Those numbers weren't necessarily concerning when compared with somebody else's resting heart rate. Someone else I know has a RHR of 80 and that's in the normal range. The higher scores mattered to me, because they represented a change from my baseline. That's the first lesson: Compare yourself with yourself. STEP 3 — LOOK FOR THE DEVIATIONS Once you understand your baseline, look for the places where your data moves away from it. Don't immediately label the change as good or bad. Just become curious. When did your RHR rise? When did it fall? Was it one unusual night? Several days? Several weeks? Or did your monthly average actually begin to move? This is where we stop looking at individual dots and begin looking for a pattern. STEP 4 — PUT YOUR LIFE NEXT TO YOUR DATA Now comes the part that I think is the most interesting. Take the RHR graph and mentally place your life beside it. Ask yourself: What was happening here? Was work unusually stressful? Were you traveling? Were you sleeping less? Were you sick? Had your training load increased? Were you drinking more—or less—alcohol? Had you changed your exercise routine? Were you recovering differently? What was happening emotionally? What was happening physically? This was important in interpreting my own data. When I saw my RHR increase in January and February, I knew what was happening in my life during those months. And when I saw May increase, I also had context: I had been traveling internationally, and I knew there were issues with several days of my wearable data. Context changes interpretation. A graph can show you what changed. Your life can help you investigate why. STEP 5 — LOOK AT MORE THAN ONE METRIC Here's another important point. Don't interpret resting heart rate completely by itself. Put it next to other information. What was happening with your HRV? Your sleep? Your recovery? Your training load? Your energy? Your stress? And most importantly: How did you feel? One metric gives us a clue. Multiple signals moving together can give us a much richer picture. Think of it as your own physiological dashboard. You're looking for relationships between the signals rather than allowing one number to define whether you're doing well. STEP 6 — CHOOSE ONE VARIABLE TO EXPERIMENT WITH Now we move from observation to action. Ask: “What is one behavior I could change consistently and then watch what happens?” Maybe it's getting to bed earlier. Maybe it's improving hydration. Adding more Zone 2 exercise. Building recovery days into your training. Meditating. Walking. Changing your alcohol intake. Or simply protecting more downtime during a stressful period. Choose something that's meaningful and realistic for you. Then give it time. This is important because we're not trying to manipulate tomorrow morning's score. We're trying to see whether consistent behavior begins to influence a trend. STEP 7 — MEASURE AGAIN And now we come back to the beginning. Measure. Notice. Experiment. Adjust. And measure again. You might even keep a very simple note beside your data: What changed this month? You could write: Higher workload. Travel. Better sleep. Started Zone 2. Stopped drinking alcohol. Illness. Vacation. More recovery. Over time, you begin creating something much more useful than a collection of numbers. You're creating a map of how your body responds to your life. DISCOVER YOUR RHR STORY So here's the experiment I want to leave you with. Pull up your resting heart rate data. And ask yourself these five questions: What is my baseline? When does my RHR move above or below that baseline? What was happening in my life when it changed? What other physiological signals moved with it? What is one behavior I could intentionally change and measure over time? Then zoom out. Don't judge yourself by tomorrow morning. Look for the story. Because the goal isn't to achieve somebody else's resting heart rate. The goal is to understand your own physiology well enough to recognize when something changes. And then have strategies available to respond. That's where measurement becomes useful. It moves us from simply collecting information... to using information to make better decisions. REVIEW — WHAT DID WE LEARN? Before we close, let's pull everything together. We started with one simple metric: resting heart rate. We learned that RHR tells us how many times our heart beats per minute while we're at rest—but the number becomes much more useful when we stop comparing ourselves with other people and begin comparing ourselves with ourselves. Then we looked at my own story. My RHR rose to: 56 bpm in January. And then: 57 bpm in February. Because I understood what was happening in my life at the time, those increases gave me information I could use. Rather than simply pushing harder, I became increasingly intentional about recovery. Then the pattern began to change. My RHR repeatedly returned toward 53. And eventually something even more interesting happened. My newest six-month average moved from: 55 bpm → 54 bpm. WHOOP identified that as: 2% lower than my previous six-month average. One beat per minute. Not dramatic. But that's exactly the point. We're not looking for dramatic. We're looking for patterns. We're looking for evidence that the system may be adapting over time. And that's why my biggest lesson from this experiment isn't: “My resting heart rate is 53.” It's: “I understand my resting heart rate better than I did before.” I know my baseline. I know some of the circumstances that push it higher. I'm beginning to understand some of the behaviors associated with it moving lower. And most importantly, I know to keep watching the trend. CONCLUSION — BECOME A STUDENT OF YOUR OWN PHYSIOLOGY This brings us back to something Dr. Kristen Holmes reinforced in Episode 405: What gets measured gets improved. But after looking at this data, I want to expand that idea. What gets measured gives us information. What gets measured consistently reveals patterns. And what gets measured over time can reveal a story. That's the opportunity I hope you take away from this episode. Become curious about your own physiology. Not obsessed with it. Not controlled by a score. Curious. Learn your baseline. Notice when something changes. Put that change into the context of your life. Experiment thoughtfully. And then zoom back out and see what happened. Because ultimately, we're not collecting data just to collect more data. We're trying to turn: Data → Awareness → Action → Adaptation. And that brings us right back to our Movement Loop: Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity. Your resting heart rate is only one metric. But it gives us a perfect example of what adaptation can look like when we stop staring at today's number and start paying attention to the larger pattern. So sometime after listening to this episode, open your own data. Go back three months. Six months. A year if you can. And ask yourself: “What story has my body been trying to tell me?” You might be surprised by what you find. COMING NEXT — BONUS EPISODE 4 And there's one part of my own physiological dashboard that I deliberately haven't explored deeply today. Sleep. Because recovery doesn't end when we stop exercising. Some of the most important recovery processes happen while we're asleep. So before we return to Dr. John Medina and move deeper into attention, learning, and cognition, I want to stay with the recovery side of our Movement Loop for one more bonus episode. In Bonus Episode 4, we're going to investigate restorative sleep. What exactly is restorative sleep? How can we measure it? What can our sleep data tell us? And perhaps most importantly: How can we use that information to improve the way we recover, adapt, and perform? We'll apply the same approach we used today. Not just: “How did I sleep last night?” But: “What story is my sleep telling me over time?” Because movement creates the stimulus. Recovery creates the opportunity to adapt. And sleep may be one of the most important places where that recovery takes place. I'll see you next time for Bonus Episode 4: The Story Behind My Restorative Sleep. REFERENCES [i]Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 405 “Movement Isn't Enough: How Recovery Drives Adaptation”  https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/movement-isnt-enough-how-recovery-drives-real-adaptation/   [ii] Health Direct “What is RHR?” https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/resting-heart-rate

ਸੋਰਠਿ ਮਹਲਾ ੯ ॥ ਮਨ ਰੇ ਪ੍ਰਭ ਕੀ ਸਰਨਿ ਬਿਚਾਰੋ ॥ ਜਿਹ ਸਿਮਰਤ ਗਨਕਾ ਸੀ ਉਧਰੀ ਤਾ ਕੋ ਜਸੁ ਉਰ ਧਾਰੋ ॥੧॥ ਰਹਾਉ ॥ ਅਟਲ ਭਇਓ ਧ੍ਰੂਅ ਜਾ ਕੈ ਸਿਮਰਨਿ ਅਰੁ ਨਿਰਭੈ ਪਦੁ ਪਾਇਆ ॥ ਦੁਖ ਹਰਤਾ ਇਹ ਬਿਧਿ ਕੋ ਸੁਆਮੀ ਤੈ ਕਾਹੇ ਬਿਸਰਾਇਆ ॥੧॥ ਜਬ ਹੀ ਸਰਨਿ ਗਹੀ ਕਿਰਪਾ ਨਿਧਿ ਗਜ ਗਰਾਹ ਤੇ ਛੂਟਾ ॥ ਮਹਮਾ ਨਾਮ ਕਹਾ ਲਉ ਬਰਨਉ ਰਾਮ ਕਹਤ ਬੰਧਨ ਤਿਹ ਤੂਟਾ ॥੨॥ ਅਜਾਮਲੁ ਪਾਪੀ ਜਗੁ ਜਾਨੇ ਨਿਮਖ ਮਾਹਿ ਨਿਸਤਾਰਾ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਕਹਤ ਚੇਤ ਚਿੰਤਾਮਨਿ ਤੈ ਭੀ ਉਤਰਹਿ ਪਾਰਾ ॥੩॥੪॥This hymn (Shabad) by Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib, written in Raag Sorath, emphasizes the supreme liberating power of seeking God's refuge and meditating on the Divine Name (Naam).Key Themes & MessageUniversal Redemption: The Guru presents four classical mythological/historical figures to demonstrate that no one is beyond redemption, regardless of their past deeds or social standing:Ganika (a court courtesan/prostitute) who attained salvation through devotion.Dhruva (a young devotee) who achieved unwavering spiritual status and fearlessness (Nirbhai Pad).Gaj (an elephant) who was instantly rescued from the jaws of a crocodile upon praying for divine protection.Ajaamal (a notorious sinner) who was redeemed in an instant.Destruction of Fear and Suffering: Divine remembrance breaks all worldly bondage, destroys pain, and grants a state of utter fearlessness.Call to Action: Guru Nanak (as the ninth Nanak) directly addresses the human mind, urging it to leave behind neglect, reflect on God as the wish-fulfilling jewel (Chintaamani), and cross the metaphorical ocean of worldly suffering.ਅਰਥ: ਹੇ ਮਨ! ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦੀ ਸਰਨ ਪੈ ਕੇ ਉਸ ਦੇ ਨਾਮ ਦਾ ਧਿਆਨ ਧਰਿਆ ਕਰ। ਜਿਸ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦਾ ਸਿਮਰਨ ਕਰਦਿਆਂ ਗਨਕਾ (ਵਿਕਾਰਾਂ ਵਿਚ ਡੁੱਬਣੋਂ) ਬਚ ਗਈ ਸੀ ਤੂੰ ਭੀ, (ਹੇ ਭਾਈ!) ਉਸ ਦੀ ਸਿਫ਼ਤਿ-ਸਾਲਾਹ ਆਪਣੇ ਹਿਰਦੇ ਵਿਚ ਵਸਾਈ ਰੱਖ।ਰਹਾਉ।ਹੇ ਭਾਈ! ਜਿਸ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦੇ ਸਿਮਰਨ ਦੀ ਰਾਹੀਂ ਧ੍ਰੂ ਸਦਾ ਲਈ ਅਟੱਲ ਹੋ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ ਤੇ ਉਸ ਨੇ ਨਿਰਭੈਤਾ ਦਾ ਆਤਮਕ ਦਰਜਾ ਹਾਸਲ ਕਰ ਲਿਆ ਸੀ, ਤੂੰ ਉਸ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਉਂ ਭੁਲਾਇਆ ਹੋਇਆ ਹੈ, ਉਹ ਤਾਂ ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਦਾ ਦੁੱਖਾਂ ਦਾ ਨਾਸ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲਾ ਹੈ।੧।ਹੇ ਭਾਈ! ਜਿਸ ਵੇਲੇ ਹੀ (ਗਜ ਨੇ) ਕਿਰਪਾ ਦੇ ਸਮੁੰਦਰ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦਾ ਆਸਰਾ ਲਿਆ ਉਹ ਗਜ (ਹਾਥੀ) ਤੰਦੂਏ ਦੀ ਫਾਹੀ ਤੋਂ ਨਿਕਲ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ। ਮੈਂ ਕਿਥੋਂ ਤਕ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦੇ ਨਾਮ ਦੀ ਵਡਿਆਈ ਦੱਸਾਂ? ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਉਚਾਰ ਕੇ ਉਸ (ਹਾਥੀ) ਦੇ ਬੰਧਨ ਟੁੱਟ ਗਏ ਸਨ।੨।ਹੇ ਭਾਈ! ਸਾਰਾ ਜਗਤ ਜਾਣਦਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਅਜਾਮਲ ਵਿਕਾਰੀ ਸੀ (ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦੇ ਨਾਮ ਦਾ ਸਿਮਰਨ ਕਰ ਕੇ) ਅੱਖ ਦੇ ਝਮਕਣ ਜਿਤਨੇ ਸਮੇ ਵਿਚ ਹੀ ਉਸ ਦਾ ਪਾਰ-ਉਤਾਰਾ ਹੋ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ। ਨਾਨਕ ਆਖਦਾ ਹੈ-(ਹੇ ਭਾਈ! ਤੂੰ) ਸਾਰੀਆਂ ਚਿਤਵਨੀਆਂ ਪੂਰੀਆਂ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੇ ਪਰਮਾਤਮਾ ਦਾ ਨਾਮ ਸਿਮਰਿਆ ਕਰ। ਤੂੰ ਭੀ (ਸੰਸਾਰ-ਸਮੁੰਦਰ ਤੋਂ) ਪਾਰ ਲੰਘ ਜਾਏਂਗਾ।੩।੪।SORAT'H, NINTH MEHL:O mind, contemplate the Sanctuary of God. Meditating on Him in remembrance, Ganika the prostitute was saved; enshrine His Praises within your heart. || 1 || Pause || Meditating on Him in remembrance, Dhroo became immortal, and obtained the state of fearlessness. The Lord and Master removes suffering in this way — why have you forgotten Him? || 1 || As soon as the elephant took to the protective Sanctuary of the Lord, the ocean of mercy, he escaped from the crocodile. How much can I describe the Glorious Praises of the Naam? Whoever chants the Lord's Name, his bonds are broken. || 2 || Ajaamal, known throughout the world as a sinner, was redeemed in an instant. Says Nanak, remember the Chintaamani, the jewel which fulfills all desires, and you too shall be carried across and saved. || 3 || 4 ||

In episode 502 of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony and Jesse begin what promises to be a multi-part deep dive into the Parable of the Good Samaritan — one of the most culturally embedded and theologically rich stories Jesus ever told. But before a single character hits the Jericho road, the hosts ground listeners in something easily overlooked: the charged context in which this parable is told. A lawyer — trained, confident, adversarial — steps forward not to learn but to test. What follows is a masterclass in how Jesus turns the law back on those who wield it as a weapon. This episode covers Luke 10:21–36, explores the covenant of works and covenant of grace, the noetic effects of sin, and why the Good Samaritan is far more than a lesson in being a helpful neighbor. Buckle up. Key Takeaways The lawyer's question is self-contradictory from the start. Asking "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" smuggles a works-righteousness assumption into the very grammar of the question. Inheritance by definition is received, not earned. Jesus does not give the lawyer a new paradigm — He reorients him to the true one. The covenant of grace is not a New Testament innovation. It runs through every Old Testament covenant administration. The lawyer should have already known this. "Do this and you will live" is not a Pelagian concession. Christ is holding out the law's own terms — perfect, total, unrelenting obedience — not to suggest it is achievable, but to expose its impossibility and drive the lawyer (and us) to the only alternative: mercy. "Desiring to justify himself" is more complex than it first appears. Tony argues that the desire to fulfill the covenant of works is not inherently wicked — it is the misguided belief that one can which is the problem. This distinction creates room for reading Christ's response as genuinely merciful instruction, not merely rebuke. The noetic effects of sin mean accurate theology can be deployed in service of self. The lawyer knows the right answers and still uses them to avoid repentance. Correct doctrine alone does not save. The fundamental human problem is not ignorance — it is the will's bondage and the heart's self-love. The parable is primarily Christological, not merely ethical. Jesus is the Good Samaritan. The story is not first about mercy ministry; it is about who binds up our wounds when we are left for dead on the road, unable to save ourselves. The priest and the Levite are not exonerated by their ritual obligations. Considerable ink has been spilled trying to justify their passing by on grounds of Levitical purity concerns. The parable refuses that exit. Everyone in the story — and everyone listening — already knows what the right thing to do was. Key Concepts The Covenant of Works Is Not a Black Box One of the more quietly important arguments Tony makes in this episode is that the covenant of works was never meant to be mysterious or inaccessible. When Jesus responds to the lawyer's question by asking, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?" — He does so with a visible assumption: there is a clear, knowable answer, and the lawyer should be able to give it. And he does. Love God completely, love your neighbor as yourself. The covenant of works was always coherent and comprehensible. The problem has never been that its demands were obscure. The problem is that no one — save the Mediator — has ever kept them. Jesus is not introducing a new ethical framework. He is forcing the lawyer to confront a standard he has always known and has never met. The Lawyer as a Warning to Reformed Christians Jesse closes the episode's first movement with a pointed and personal application that cuts across theological self-satisfaction. The lawyer is not a caricature of ignorance — he is a portrait of someone with accurate, affirmed theological knowledge who instinctively deploys it in the service of self-justification the moment he senses conviction. Jesse names this directly as a danger particularly acute in Reformed circles, where doctrinal precision can become a subtle mechanism of self-defense rather than an occasion for repentance. The Reformation's great recovery of grace must not become a new form of the very disease it diagnosed. Knowing the right words about total depravity, the covenant of grace, and the mediator does not exempt anyone from the need to actually be humbled by them. Theology is not armor against repentance — it is, rightly received, the road toward it. Context Is Not Just Setup — It Is Part of the Lesson Tony and Jesse both emphasize that Luke 10:21–24 is not merely throat-clearing before the real content begins. The theological statement embedded there — that the Father has hidden these things from the wise and revealed them to little children, that no one knows the Son except the Father or the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him — is the hermeneutical key to everything that follows. The lawyer approaches Jesus as one rabbi testing another. But Luke has already told his readers that this is not a conversation between equals debating interpretive options. It is the Lawgiver being questioned by someone who does not recognize Him. The parable that follows is not just an answer to a legal question. It is a revelation — the kind that only happens when the Son chooses to give it. Memorable Quotes You do not want to pit the law against the one who has given the law, the one whose character is represented in the law — because you're always going to get owned, and you'll get owned before you realize you've just gotten owned on multiple levels. - Jesse Schwamb Jesus is trying to sort of reorient them back to the true paradigm of grace that is present under all of the Old Covenant administrations. It's not so much a matter of developing a new framework and imposing it on this guy. It's really trying to say, 'Listen — think about this for a second. Think about the fact that, yes, you know you have to love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole strength, your whole mind, and you have to love your neighbor as yourself. You've answered correctly. If you can do those things, you will live.' — with the subtext: and of course you cannot possibly do those things. - Tony Arsenal The fundamental human problem is not primarily ignorance, but the will's bondage and the heart's self-love. It's a problem no amount of correct discipline or doctrine alone can fix apart from some kind of regenerating grace — which is exactly what Jesus is going to illustrate for us in the mercy he's about to display in this parable. - Jesse Schwamb Full Transcript Tony Arsenal: [00:00:00] This parable is not primarily about us figuring out how to do mercy ministry. Like, that's important. It's probably an outcome of this. It's probably something for us to think about. But really, this is actually Christ saying, like, "Hold on a second here, dude." Like, "Let's just think about this." Do you need someone who is going to tell you to pick yourself up off your bootstraps and cross to the other side of the street and leave you to your own devices? Or do you need someone who's gonna throw you on their donkey, who's gonna bind up your wounds, who's gonna pay the innkeeper, and is gonna pledge to pay everything that is owed for your salvation? Right? That's not too on the nose here, I think. Welcome to episode 502 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I'm [00:01:00] Jesse  And I'm Tony, and this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey, brother.  Jesse Schwamb: Hey, brother. Well, we've got a big one to talk about on this episode. We're marching further and further into all of the glorious parables Jesus told as part of His teaching. And as you and I kind of joked before we began, I mean, what did you call it? Did you say this is, uh, the big daddy?  Tony Arsenal: It's the big daddy, one of the big daddy parables.  Jesse Schwamb: It's one of the big daddy parables. Now, this one is probably second maybe only to the prodigal son. Yeah But in terms of its ubiquity and its kind of just common knowledge in culture, this one ranks right up there. And before I reveal what it is, which you may already know, I was thinking how so many times we look at the Beatitudes as expression of a master class in Jesus teaching the law, and I think that's true. But as I was reading and thinking about this particular parable, I thought, "I don't know. I think this one is, uh, right up there," because [00:02:00] this is like law on law. It's double law. Yeah It's law coming back at the law giver who's trying to use the law to test Jesus, and then Jesus tests him with the law that He himself gave His people. It's... I'm already getting too excited- ... and we've got something to do before we get there. But we're talking about the parable of the Good Samaritan. And so I can't imagine, can I just make a prediction up front? I, you know where I'm going with this, and probably everybody else does. Uh, this is gonna be like two conversations-  Tony Arsenal: At least ...  Jesse Schwamb: probably.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, at least two.  Jesse Schwamb: Is that fair? Because I realize we, of course, wanna get to the parable itself, and oh, my goodness, how much ink has been spilled. Even going back to, like, if you read, like, Augustine or, like, the early church, like the Patristics, the Church Fathers, there are so much that could be said, and maybe some stuff that just shouldn't be said about all the allegorical potential intent here about these characters. But [00:03:00] there's so much amazing stuff that happens in the opening of this, that's not just the setup, but it is its own lesson, and I'm real excited actually to talk about that with you before we even get into, like, all the good stuff that everybody expects that you wanna talk about. So we're gonna do it all. Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: We're gonna do it all, but it'll take time.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. I'm interested to see if we're even on the same page about where to start reading, 'cause I, I think we might not be, and that's gonna be fun. So we'll, we'll let it fly and see what happens. It'll be our own little, uh, podcast game.  Jesse Schwamb: But, uh, I think- Well, I mean, we're gonna be in Luke chapter 10, but I guess to your point, we should be starting in Luke chapter one to get to this. Yeah.  Tony Arsenal: Exactly. But  Jesse Schwamb: we, we do have to back up quite a bit, and I was gonna ask you about that. Yeah. But I, apparently we're just gonna play that on the fly and see where we go.  Affirmations Denials Segment Jesse Schwamb: But of course, the Reformers had their five solos. Chalcedon had its, what, seven withouts. We've got opinions, and we're just as confident about ours, so of course it's time for affirmations, denials, where we affirm something that we think is good or awesome or [00:04:00] we wanna recommend, and we deny, again, something that is not so great or maybe just plain annoying. So before we talk about the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Tony, what do you got for us on this episode? Are you affirming with something, or are you gonna come in with a denial?  Tony Arsenal: Well, I've got two affirmations. That's fine. One is just- I will allow it ... a declaration of joy, and one is, like, a real affirmation. I, I just can't... It would be remiss of me not to share with our podcasting family that my son August and my daughter Adeline, uh, joined the visible church today as- Hear, hear ... uh, non-communicant members. Uh, Augie and Addie were baptized on the 16th of August of 2026, uh, into the visible church, into the name of Jesus Christ. Uh, was, it was just a great service. Um, it's funny because I've been- been talking with Augie. One of the thing with toddlers when you're doing something big like this is you kinda have to talk about it and practice and rehearse, rehearse it and, and get them ready for it. And up until maybe, like, I don't know, three days [00:05:00] ago, every time it would come up he would be saying, "I don't wanna be baptized. I don't wanna be baptized." And, um, you know, I, I, I, you know, I don't wanna force him to do something, but also, like, I make him eat vegetables. But, um- ... he, I, I think it was nerves, and I think something clicked in his head and all of a sudden he was very excited to be baptized. So, um, it was great. We've been talking about, you know, what baptism is, God's promise to you that if you trust him he'll save you. And so today he- Right ... he was like, "God's gonna make a promise to me to save me." So he was very excited. Nice. And he did a great job just standing quietly and listening to the pastor talk. Uh, and Addie was, was, was just a beautiful little girl, and she, um, she loved it as well. So that's just a bonus affirmation. I don't know that I could get through a podcast without gushing over that.  Glorify App and Devotionals Tony Arsenal: Uh, but the, the affirmation I have, uh, this is an, an app that I think some of our listeners may have heard of. Um, some may roll their eyes at it, to be honest with you. Um, I stumbled on this because, uh, you have an Oura Ring, don't you, Jesse? Jesse Schwamb: I do.  Tony Arsenal: You [00:06:00] do, yeah. So for those who don't know, an Oura Ring is like a little wearable ring that's like a, almost like a fitness tracker, but it tracks biometrics, pulse rate, temperature, all these different things, sleep. Um, there's a startup, uh, that has been doing a GoFundMe or a funding kind of thing for, uh, what they're calling like a Christian version of an Oura Ring. So it does a lot of the same things, sleep tracking, basic biometric tracking. Hmm. But it also has like alerts built in, and it's tied into an app that they use for devotionals. So it'll, it'll remind you to pray. It'll remind you, you know, bring you to an app to do a devotion. But the app it uses is a standalone app that I looked up, and it's called Glorify. Have you ever heard of this app before this evening? I have heard of  Jesse Schwamb: this, yeah.  Tony Arsenal: So Glorify is just a small devotional app. Uh, it's not much different than you would expect based on the name. It is connected to this, uh, to this Glorify ring, which again is, is sort of like an Oura Ring tied into this app. But this app basically is, is [00:07:00] designed to help you complete short daily devotional exercises, and they're usually very brief. They're based on a very brief, um, a very brief passage of scripture. Today's passage, uh, c- there's a quote. So today's quote is from Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It says, "True love does not consist in finding the perfect person, but in faithfully loving an imperfect one." Not sure why this devotional app is using a romance, uh, quote from Bonhoeffer of all people. But that was today's. Um, and the passage is Proverbs 5:15-17. So it's a, it's a devotional based on two verses, which is fine. So you read the passage. There's a very brief devotional on that passage, and then sort of a guided prayer, and they have both premium and free models. The premium model includes like you can listen to the devotional, you can listen to the prayer. Um, but just for example, today's prayer, it, it's very simple. "Loving Father, thank you for, uh, thank you because you're faithful and unchanging. In a world [00:08:00] marked by broken promises, disposable relationships, you remain the same. Teach me to reflect that faithfulness in my relationships. Help me to love with perseverance, grace, and commitment following the example of Christ. Protect marriages, strengthen families, restore what needs healing. May every relationship be marked by respect, truth, and genuine love. Shape in me a heart of integrity that honors you in both the small and significant choices of life. In Jesus' name, amen." So I think what I love about this, and this, I mentioned last week that there was, this is kind of like, sort of like the fluffy evangelical devotions. Like- Right ... there's not a ton of like solid doctrinal meat- But like, it's still nourishing. And sometimes we need a little bit of help. Sometimes we don't know what to pray, we don't know what to read, we're not sure. Sometimes in, I think in our Reformed circles, we feel like if we're not reading large portions of scripture and reading deep theological treaties or long, complex devotionals, that we're really not doing anything, and that's just not the [00:09:00] truth. So I've been using this in addition to other devotional studies I'm doing. I don't do it every day. I mean, there's some like streak functionality, kinda like habit tracking type stuff that's built into it. Um, but it's nice. It's nice to be able to pick it up, read a very short scripture, a brief devotional thought, and then have some guided prayer. I know one of the reasons I don't pray as often as I ought to is because I struggle to know what and how to pray. So even having some written prayers, I mean, this is why the Psalms are good, things like the Valley of Visions are good. Um, having some pre-written prayers that you genuinely pray but you're not having to come up with in the moment can really help. Right. So the app is called Glorify. I know it's available on iPhone. I'm not sure about Android. I'm sure it probably is. I'm sure they wanna have a pretty broad ecosystem. Um, and, and it's good. Again, it's, it's not anything fancy. It's not anything like super technical. Uh, and as I kind of alluded, like some of it's a little weird. Um, I, I didn't read the proverb. I think maybe the proverb is about romantic relationships, why they're, why they're tying in that, um, Bonhoeffer quote in, in the prayer. [00:10:00] But, um, even that, like it's pretty innocuous. And the quotes, like you don't have to read the quotes. It's not like you have to have to do that. Um, you could jump in, just read the scripture or just read the devotion and just do the prayer and you would be fine. So check it out. It's called Glorify, available on iPhone for sure. I'm pretty sure it's on, on Android. And maybe it's something you add daily, you know, this kinda thing like you do when you're on the bus or you're waiting at the grocery store, something quick you can do when you might be wasting that time just sorta sitting around or scrolling Twitter. Again, Twitter's fine. You can use your leisure time as you see fit. But if you wanna fill it with something like this, something that is more spiritual, then this would be a good option to just add a little bit of, uh, a little bit of nourishment to your diet where you might not otherwise be getting it  Jesse Schwamb: I have no proof of this, but I just keep saying it anyway. It might be that we're living in the golden age of really great- ... daily worship resources. Like, something to actually cultivate, not just, like, a devotional nugget, but something that actually leads you into a pattern and a habit of [00:11:00]worship, giving your attentive focus on Jesus. And I love that. So, uh, uh, 'cause I was just thinking, like, I was trying to look back on some of our past affirmations here. We've talked about the book Walking in Faith. I just gave everybody Awake My Soul last week. You're coming in with the Glorify app. I- we've talked about Dwell, if not recently, we've talked about that for some time. It's like a great Bible reading app, and there's lots and lots of new features, by the way, coming out on that- Yeah that are fantastic. And then, yes, all these other great prayers. I, I see, like, these books on prayer, like, actually, I'm sorry, like, prayer books, I guess, as, like, a great way to kinda... It's like a jumper for your car. You know what I mean? Like, just gets you started. What a, what a lovely thing to come into a place and have a launching pad. And I've been using a lot of Into His Presence, which is a collection of Puritan prayers, sometimes because, for instance, this just happened, where I wanted to pray for someone who was just going through a rough time, a good friend of mine. And I went to that place to kinda start and frame, knowing that I was gonna sit down with him and pray, how I might be able to do that well and [00:12:00] effectively. And these things are just, like, really phenomenal resources. It's just an amazing time to have all these things at our disposal. So that's another great option. It's, it's really more about, like you and I have talked about, Tony, like, whatever gets us into that pattern, whatever gets us, like, authentically experiencing under our own volition, coming in the discipline of sitting before God in daily worship with that expression being pretty broad in its representation- Yeah is to really include something of devotional time in the scriptures, memorization, metabolation, metabolizing. Metabolation, I'm just gonna make that up as, like- ... what happens when you, when you take the scripture and metabolize it into your own life. Meditating on it and, you know, again, maybe looking through the confessions and creeds that have shaped our distilled understanding of what the scripture teaches so that we're enhancing and edifying our mind. We're also engaging the heart, and then we're engaging God and ourselves in communication with Him through prayer. I'm all for anything [00:13:00] that gets us into those rhythms, reminds us of the importance of them, and like we talked about last week, makes it so that when we think about what it means to be married to Christ, so to speak, it's not just about whipping out some kind of marriage certificate to prove that, but that we actually have a frame and a behavioral pattern that fits a married person, that- Yeah how they act, how they think, how they behave, how they communicate, they're never too far away from their lovely spouse in some way or another. And so I think that these tools are great ways to get us exactly into that kind of mindset and practice.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah, absolutely. And like I said, like, I think- In our Reformed circles, we can, you know, we, we tend to be maybe a little eggheaded, and we, we tend to be a little more intellectual and, and a little more, I don't know, studious. And there's nothing wrong with that. Um, but I think sometimes it can breed a sort of, uh, elitism and arrogance. Sure. Uh, this is a perfectly valid devotional tool. Yes. Mm-hmm. And, and I think, [00:14:00] you know, kinda like the old adage, like, well, what's the best translation of scripture? Well, whichever one you're gonna read. Exactly. Like, what's the best devotional tool? Whichever one you're gonna use, whichever one's actually gonna bring you into the Word, uh, on a, on a regular basis. Um, and again, like, two verses of the scripture is two verses of the scripture that you might- Right ... not have other spent time, otherwise spent time reading. And it really is short enough, and it saves your progress. Like, you can do, you can do the quote in the morning, and then you can check the scripture on the way to the, you know, the word work, on a stoplight or whatever. Um, if you have the, the paid subscription, you can listen to this stuff, you know, on the, the bus or whatever. Um, so check it out. Glorify app, they have a ring they're making. It's in funding, I guess, if you wanna check it out, you can check that out too. I am neither affirming nor denying whatever this Glory ring is, Glorify ring. But, um, but yeah, the app is great. The, the app is free, and it's, it's worth even just checking out and adding once in a while to your day  Jesse Schwamb: The glory ring or the glorify ring sounds like almost too Tolkien, even for me  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. It's the one ring to rule all of your devotions. [00:15:00] Uh, and in the, and in the morning bind them. Jesse, save me from the trail I was about to go on, and, and I was gonna speak in the language of Mordor, I think, on accident. Uh, save us from this. What are you affirming or denying?  Jesse Schwamb: That's  Tony Arsenal: beautiful. Please tell me it's the language of Mordor. Elvish AI and Music Pick Jesse Schwamb: Uh, no, but can I just say at the risk of really taking us really far afield so early on, which is not necessarily off-brand for us, I have done this... I, I don't know if I should be ashamed by this or I should be excited by this. But- ... um, the Elvish tongue in the Tolkien universe-  Tony Arsenal: Oh, no. ...  Jesse Schwamb: is like, there's several... If you're super nerdy, you'll know there's like several different kind of iterations or formulas of it, and there's no, like, official language like Klingon, but there ha- it has been studied, and basically, like, it's kind of like the Eugene Peterson of the language. Like, there's, like, just kind of a dynamic equivalent or an expression of words. Anyway, all that to say- ... there's several languages that, uh, Microsoft Copilot will just not [00:16:00] translate because it says, like, "This one, this language doesn't actually exist. There's not enough for me to do anything." Let me tell you something. Tolkien Elvish is not one of those languages, and I actually built an agent, because I have a coworker who can, uh, who can appreciate all this stuff, that takes a text, translates it into this kind of academic high-level Elvish from Tolkien, and then translates it back to English. That makes anything you're saying way better and far more poetic and just absolutely amazing. So if you wanna have some fun, go and do that with whatever your favorite AI model is. Anyway, that's free of charge. Real quick, my affirmation is more music. It just turns out I've found this band, and I've been listening to them a lot. The band's name is Thronebreaker, which is just a phenomenal name, I think, for any group. Uh, it's amazing. Uh, th- this is... I'm gonna read you their description from Spotify. It just says, "Thronebreaker is Christian metalcore built for the bruised, the doubting, and the ones still fighting their way home." And what I've really been [00:17:00] loving about them is it is kind of like Wolves at the Gate adjacent. It's really lovely music. It is melodic, so it's, there's not just that there's that kind of hard edge, but that is present in it. But, uh, the music is really lovely and beautiful, and in part that's because they're going through this, like, drip of releasing music where they're taking, like, old hymns or maybe songs if you're of a certain age like I am of kind of childhood Sunday school- And they're taking the lyrics, not the melody, and they're reimagining them. So they have two versions of Jesus Loves Me that they just released. They have the old We're Gonna Cross, a song called Glory to the King Most High. These songs are just saturated with gospel. Like, they're just all power, all encouragement, and all authority represented in Jesus Christ. They're incredible, and I've j- where I've, what I've been really blessed by is these two versions of Jesus Love Me are just fantastic. Like, they're orchestral. There is a children's kind of chorus at one point, and it got me [00:18:00] singing that song again, and really, maybe to what you were saying before, Tony, like sitting in those three words, which are really phenomenal words to hear. And so I have been surprised at how moved I've been by what really I, I first understood, of course, as a children's song with simple truth that seems, you know, depending on how long you've known some part of the gospel, obvious. And yet I found them all new again, and a, a really lovely way of just sitting in the truth of God in music that I didn't expect to find. So if you're interested in any of that or maybe just curious of what it would sound like if a Christian metalcore band took Jesus Loves Me and turned it into their genre, then honestly you should just go check out Throne Breaker. I mean, you pretty much have to at this point.  Tony Arsenal: I, I don't ever have anything to add to your musical affirmations or denials, 'cause I, I just don't. What I do have to add is that Throne Breaker actually sounds like some sort of really [00:19:00] amazing, like, mace-type weapon in Lord of the Rings. Yes.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes,  Tony Arsenal: it does. Or like a big hammer that a dwarf carries. And I would also like to say that if you ask Google Gemini to translate something into Tolkien English, it not only will do it, it will tell you how to pronounce it.  Google Elf: A ava aini Ilai amel i trona se.  Tony Arsenal: What do you think that was, Jesse?  Jesse Schwamb: No idea.  Tony Arsenal: First of all, that was elevated Quenya, a Quenya. Yes.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes, that's  Tony Arsenal: the one. Classic Quenya.  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Google Elf: A leta Ilai amel aima.  Tony Arsenal: I would be willing to bet... Actually, let's do this.  Jesse Schwamb: Ugh.  Tony Arsenal: Uh, we don't give out prizes very often. Uh, I will say to anyone who can tell me what that is, the first person that emails, uh, or, or goes into the Telegram chat, we'll do this. We'll be professional podcasters and drive people to one of our channels. Here we  Jesse Schwamb: go.  Tony Arsenal: The first person who goes to our telephone, our Telegram chat and tells me what that [00:20:00] means, what that, uh, Elvish means, will get a Reformed Brotherhood T-shirt.  Jesse Schwamb: Oh, that is big.  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: That-  Tony Arsenal: So I'm gonna, I'm gonna play it one more time.  Jesse Schwamb: Okay, here we go. Everybody listen. Every- All right, pull over. Stop your vehicles. Here we go.  Google Elf: A leta Ilai amel aima.  Tony Arsenal: There it is, everybody.  Jesse Schwamb: I'm not being a cry- I have a guess, but I, I, I wanna try to win the T-shirt, so I'm gonna- Yes ... wi- withhold. All right. Uh, yeah, that's, that's super fun. Did it, um... Did you also translate it back into English from that  Tony Arsenal: just to see- No, I'll do that later, 'cause that would give away the, that would  Jesse Schwamb: give away the prize. Yeah, it's, it's... We'll have to save that for next week, because that, that is the fun. It creates, like, what I was doing to, to have fun with this coworker is take very technical, like, work-related emails, and I would send it through. It would go through that iterative process, and I actually loved how it, it was talking. Like, it wa- this was an email about risk, and it, it gave, like, these beautiful grand metaphors that didn't sound corny or cheesy. That's the beautiful thing. That's amazing. It [00:21:00] was like true Elvish. Like, you were just like, "I wish I spoke that way all the time about, about risk." And it, like I said, it wasn't just like... You could, you could obviously throw something in and be like, "Make this Shakespearean," or, you know, "Make this, you know, sound like, you know, Milton." This is way better. This is way better, because it's not, like, actually trying to manipulate what you're saying. It's takes, like, the dynamic equivalent of what you said, then translates it back with way more kind of poetic infrastructure while maintaining, like, the essential meaning that you have. I'm, I'm selling this too hard. Everybody just has to go out and try it. So, all right, you know what's at stake here, but here's how you have to win this. If you want a chance, if you want a chance at winning this, you gotta go to t.me/reformedbrotherhood, t.me/reformedbrotherhood, and that link will take you to the Telegram app and our little corner of it, and you're gonna find there's a bunch of chats there. You gotta go to the affirmations or denials chat, and then you gotta put in what is the translation of what Tony just played.[00:22:00] I just love... Isn't it amazing, though, that, like, y- as you discovered, there's more than one version of Elvish available? Yeah. And they do differentiate between the various kinds. This is a big deal. I learned there are actually scholars who have, like, again, filled in kind of like the details of the language- Oh, yeah taking as a basis what Tolkien had there. Yeah. So I think that this is the best. We couldn't have conceived of this if we'd actually tried and planned for it, so-  Tony Arsenal: It's true ...  Jesse Schwamb: it's just better that it all happened in, in real time. It's true. And, and speaking of which, I think now we get to have the fun of figuring out, uh, where in Luke chapter 10 are we gonna begin? Or should we just start in Luke 1 and just let's see how far we can get reading  Tony Arsenal: in this- I could have, I could have Google Gemini read it in elevated Kenya, Quenya I did try to get it to put it in Sindarin, and it wouldn't do it for some reason. I'm not sure. Maybe this anti-Sindarin bias in Gemini,  Jesse Schwamb: man. Disappointing.  Tony Arsenal: It's disappointing.  Jesse Schwamb: Dis- disappointing. So let's kick off some Good Samaritan talk, which again, I think is gonna take us [00:23:00] through maybe in the next couple of conversations, in part because, like I said, we're not even gonna start at, uh, verse 25 because there is so much more that needs to be said, I think, before that. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. I, I think actually the proper place to start this, and I, I'm guessing Jesse probably, whether he was there or not, he probably figured out where I was going, uh, over the course of the last 20 minutes or whatever. Um, I actually think the proper place to start, at least one of the proper places to start, is in verse 21. Yeah. Um, and I- we'll talk about why that is. And I'll... I'm gonna read here, um, 21, uh, through the end of the parable. Uh, and this is Jesus talking. He says in this, uh... Well, it, this is, um... Yes, uh, I'll just read it here. "In the same hour He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, 'I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for such was Your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one who knows who the Son is except... No, no one knows who the Son is [00:24:00] except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Himself.'" Then turning to the disciples, he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see and did not see it, and hear what you hear and did not hear it." And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have answered correctly. Do this and you will live." But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and he saw him and passed on the other side. So likewise a Levite, [00:25:00] when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. And he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take good care of him. Whatever you, whatever more you spend I will repay you when I come back.' Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" And he said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "You go and do likewise."  Jesse Schwamb: I think you're right, of course, to back us up into verse 21 because I don't want to keep saying it's always a setup, but Jesus is certainly giving us like the right context in which... Well, Luke of course is the author here and as he's explaining the teaching of Jesus, he does so well to start out with some irony that we don't realize is gonna be ironic until we get to the, to verse 25 [00:26:00] when we realize who's testing Jesus, who's setting this all up. So this idea that the Holy Spirit, everybody rejoicing in the Holy Spirit and the knowledge and the wisdom, the intelligence that's revealed through the Holy Spirit to all of these lesser people and in particular here emblematic the infants That here we have kings and rulers, and in this case, this beloved scholar of the law, who all have this adventure in missing the point. They think, in fact, they're looking for the one who is to set them free, and they can't even see that it's Him who is before him. And yet, incidentally, God has already revealed all these things to the lowest, to the ones who are the most humble, the meek, the mild, the down and outs, the ones who are weak by the view of everybody else. And so it's amazing that if we just kinda, again, like blow past it into, like, just all the characters, we don't see that the teaching starts actually well above this, that even everything we're about to understand, that unfolds in our lives, ev- every spiritual incarnation and insight that we have [00:27:00] first starts with God himself in his revealing it to us both in his general revelation, but of course, in the specific revelation of his teaching. So I like that you started us there, because I, I'm with you. That's where this whole thing launches off, right?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Parables Reveal and Conceal Tony Arsenal: Yeah, and as we come into when we very, like very start of this, uh, series, the, the parable series, Jesus sort of embeds a theology of parables into this introduction, right? Or I should say Luke does. But this, uh, this is written a- as though all of this is occurring as sort of one event. Right. And likely it was, right? So sometimes, uh, in the Gospels, events are kind of, like, moved next to each other for thematic reasons. It's possible that that's the case. It seems like this may have actually just been one, one teaching, and I'll, I'll talk about why that is in a second here. Um, but at the very least, this is placed next to each other in the Gospel almost as, like a, "Here's the theology of parables. Now, here's actually that happening in real [00:28:00] time."  Jesse Schwamb: Yes.  Tony Arsenal: And then also, like, a parable kinda demonstrating it, right? So the theology of the parable here is that there are many prophets, kings who desire to see what it is that, that, uh, uh, the disciples are seeing, right? And all things have been handed over to the Father or to, to the Son, by the Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father. No one who knows who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal, right? So the, the theology of parables here presented in Luke is that the parable itself is being used as a way to reveal the Father and the Son to those whom the Son chooses to reveal it to. The Lawyer as the Fool Tony Arsenal: And that leaves us with this lawyer, um, sort of playing, playing the fool in almost like a dramatic sense, right? In a lot of drama, there's kind of like the fool character who's sort of like the foil or the idiot of the thing who's, who's unaware and is almost like made an example of, right? Um, I, I can't think of any examples off the top of my head, but there's often a character in a play who's like, uh, it's [00:29:00] almost like the opposite of the everyman, right? The everyman in a, in a play- Right ... or in a movie is sort of like the outsider who things gets explained to, and he's sort of the proxy for, for the audience. Um, I think like, um, Hawkeye in Avengers is kind of the everyman. He's sort of just like this regular dude swept up in this thing, and oftentimes he's the one that, uh, the big characters are explaining things to. And really what that is is the big characters are explaining that to the audience through this proxy. There's also this concept of the fool in a lot of these plays or movies who's sort of like the dummy, the idiot of the play, who things are explained to, and it's still a way to explain it to the audience, but the character doesn't get it. And so that's kind of, kind of the role that this lawyer is playing in this, this narrative here. He, he steps forward. He's like, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answers his question, and then in this like sort of like stunning moment of, like unawareness, he's trying to justify himself. He says, "Well, who is my neighbor?"[00:30:00] As though that's a question that needed to be asked, right? I think, like, we sort of think of it as like, "Oh, yeah, that's a valid question." I actually don't think it is. Like, it's pretty obvious, in the Old Testament at least, who your neighbor is. It's the people who live immediately with you. It's the other people of Israel. It's the people in your immediate concentric circles, the people you have direct access to. Um, and so then Jesus explains it through this parable, and whether or not he gets it at the end, I guess is maybe a little bit unclear. We can talk about that as we get there. But at least in the beginning, he's portrayed as this sort of, like, fool who doesn't understand what Jesus is saying, and then this parable is taught. So it's this theology of, um, revelation to those whom it is intended to, and further obscuring from those it's intended not to, not to illuminate, which is identical. Uh, maybe it's a different flavor of the same thing, but it's the same thing as what Matthew had and what Jesus taught- Right ... in Matthew with the parables. Jesse Schwamb: Right. It definitely is, again, illustrating, again, God's divine prerogative. I think you really have to do a lot of theological gymnastics [00:31:00] to try to work yourself out of a place here that says, like, "Well, this, this knowledge is accessible to all people."  Tony Arsenal: Right.  Jesse Schwamb: That if somehow we just work hard enough, study hard enough, come even before God with the right attitude or do the right things, that somehow all this will be made plain to us, and that's certainly not the truth here. In fact, again, the ironic setup is you have this lawyer asking this question, which creates this strange contrast because here's a man trained in the law, and he approaches the very wisdom of God to test him while the little children already perceive what this fool cannot. So it's irony upon irony, and then I, I like what you're saying. I think, and we'll get to this to anticipate a bit, I'm reading this as he's hoping that the answer to whom is my neighbor, just like he- he's received the affirmative from Jesus saying, "Yes, you understand. Go and do these things. This is life," and we'll get to all of what that means, I think, as well in terms of the covenant of works and the covenant of grace. But I think he's hoping that the definition of neighbor is gonna mean that he has [00:32:00] already accomplished the thing then, so that if there's somehow- Yeah ... he could just set the right boundaries. He could say, "Ah, yeah, I'm already good then, Jesus. I already, already did all that stuff." So- It's wild to me that it, it all starts with, of course, like some kind of scribal specialist in the Torah, of course, likely some kind of Pharisee by theological alignment. And as I'm looking at the notes here, what I find particularly stunning as we start this out is that Luke, of course, is able to speak several times in this parable to the intent. And so he says right away with great kind of fanfare and description that the intent here from this scribal Torah person was to test or to tempt, which is the same verb used of Satan's temptation of Christ and of Israel's testing of God in Deuteronomy 6, which of course Jesus is gonna quote here later on. So it's not, of course, like sincere inquiry, like you're saying. It, it is like adversarial probing. It is like really profound setup. It is dripping with like [00:33:00] ulterior motive. It's seeking to expose Jesus as either like heterodox or as diminishing the law's demands. And I think we've talked about this before, so Tony, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure in one of the previous parables we talked about sometimes how these get set up with this kind of weird like oxymoronic setting. Inherit Eternal Life Debate Jesse Schwamb: So like this question of se- uh, uh, itself, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  Jesse Schwamb: It's like more than just theologically revealing. Biblically it's self-contradictory, 'cause of course like we talked about inheritance, I think actually when we went through the, the parable of the prodigal. By definition, that's received, of course, on the ba- basis of relationship or promise. It's not earned by performance. And if the inheritance comes by a law, it no longer comes by promise, right? I think that's like Galatians. So the lawyer's question already portray- portrays like some kind of weird works righteous paradigm. E- even if you think he's really after trying to understand the true intent of God's heart [00:34:00] behind the law, he is assuming at least in this question that eternal life is some kind of wage that he can earn rather than a gift to be received by grace through faith. And that's a fundamental error that the entire subsequent exchange, including the parable, is designed to expose. It's both, like you're saying, Tony, he has not learned yet what it means to be in the kingdom of God. He's outside of that, and so he's trying... Now Jesus is bringing in this corrective action, as it were, set up in a story, but he's gonna turn the law on him, which, which I don't wanna get too excited about that yet. But he's... But essentially, here we have somebody who's the expert in the law trying to leverage the law by way of force against the one who he does not understand has all leverage and authority over him, and is in fact the law giver himself So he's gonna, Jesus is gonna drive him to see his own ability to keep the law that he claims to honor, and that's more than just brilliant. This is what the law does. You do not wanna pit the law against the one who has given the law, the [00:35:00] one whose character is represented in the law, because you're always going to get owned, and you'll get owned before you realize you've just gotten owned on multiple levels, and I think that's what basically unfolds here. Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah, I, I have a little bit of a different take on the, the word inherit here. Um, I don't think what you're saying is wrong, um, but I think there's a little different flavor here, and actually, I, I think it, it still sort of propels us forward to the conversation we have to have, um, about the law and the gospel and the covenant of works, the covenant of grace. The, the Greek that lays under this word is, uh, it's a compound word of the word for, like, lot or portion and the word for law. And so, so the, this force of the word is more along the lines of, like, what shall I do to have a legal right to eternal life? Like- Right ... inherit, I think we hear inherit, and we think of, like, um, like what you get when someone dies, and so, like, obviously there's nothing you do to earn it, and that's certainly an element of the way this [00:36:00] word is used in some instances. I think reading this and kind of how, how the rest of the text plays out, this lawyer is coming forward and he's like, "What do I need to do to have a rightful legal claim to eternal life?" Right? We might even be able, and this is where it comes into the covenant of grace, covenant of works k- kind of paradigm. We might even be able to say that what this lawyer or this person comes forward to ask Jesus is, how do I gain, how do I gain the benefits of the covenant of works, right?  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: Yep. That's language that was developed later that's not, not, like, biblical language in terms of, like, the actual language within the text, but that's the force of what he's saying. What must I do to be a rightful legal... Uh, what must I do to have a rightful legal claim on all of the blessings of the covenant of works, is really the question that's here. And so Jesus' answer is so instructive- Right ... 'cause what he says is, "Well, what's written in the law?" Like, he, he basically says, like, "Well, you should be able to tell me, teacher- Exactly of [00:37:00] the law, like, what, what needs to happen there." And there's an assumption on Christ's part that, like, there is an answer. I think sometimes, sometimes we, we, uh, we make an error in thinking that the covenant of works was never attainable, that it's somehow this, like, um, it's almost like a black box. Like, nobody could know what we have to do to, like, obtain eternal life. That's absolutely not the assumption Jesus makes. Jesus not only knows that there's an answer, it's such a straightforward answer that he expects this scribe to be able to answer it, right? And the scribe can, right? The scribe says, "Well, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul, your mind, your strength, and your neighbor as yourself," right? The summary of the law. Just good old classic Westminster larger, shorter catechism. Where's the law summarily comprehended? Summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments. And then, then again, I don't know the questions exactly, but then it also, like, says, like, "Where does Christ summarize this?" Well, you should love the Lord your God, and you should love your [00:38:00] neighbor as yourself, right? Covenant Works and Grace Tony Arsenal: So the, the lawyer comes forward and says, "What do I need to do to have a legal right to all of the blessings of the covenant of works?" Christ says, "Well, what do you think?" He says, "Well, you obey the entirety of the law." And he says, "You've answered correctly. Do this. Obey the entirety of the law and you will live." So the parable itself doesn't necessarily speak to this law, gospel, covenant of works, covenant of grace paradigm. The, the parable is used to show that not only does this lawyer know what is required of him, but that he won't do it.  Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: And I think that's really key, because even in the parable, within the parable itself, there are these figures that know what they should do, right? I, I think, um, we'll get into it, but there's a lot of ink spilled on almost like, um, explaining [00:39:00] why the priest and the Phar- phar- and the, the Levite almost like did the right thing by going to the other side of the room, and it points to like, well, their priestly and Levitical responsibilities, if they touch a dead body, like they can't do those things, and those things are so important. Like, there's a lot of ink spilled trying to almost explain why what they did is right, when the point of the parable is that actually we all know what the right thing to do in that sense was. And even the most righteous people in the mind of the hearers, the Levites and the priests, the most righteous people, even they don't do what they're supposed to do. Jesse Schwamb: Right.  Tony Arsenal: This, this paradigm, this gospel law paradigm, law gospel paradigm, this covenant of works, covenant of grace paradigm, is so baked into the very like fabric of, of human thought that it's just there. And Christ takes this time to point out to this lawyer, like, "You know what's expected of you." And so that's why the phrase desiring to justify himself is so key [00:40:00] here. I actually think that the, the, the I don't wanna go so far as to say, like, that this person was regenerated in the midst of this conversation, 'cause I don't know that. But I actually think that there's a forward movement of this lawyer as he interacts with Christ that is optimistic. I'm optimistic about it, right? Right. He starts out trying to test Jesus, then he star- then he moves to having a desire to justify himself. I think we hear that, we read that, desiring to justify himself, we automatically think that that's a negative thing. But if we think about justifying himself in terms of what he's talking about, how do I fulfill the obligations of the covenant of works, that's not a bad thing to wanna do. Right. It's not bad to wanna obey God's law and to lay claim to His promises. It's a misguided notion of something we can't accomplish, but in itself, desiring to justify himself is to desire to fulfill the obligations of the covenant of works. That's not necessarily a bad thing. And so I think this is a merciful, a merciful [00:41:00] teaching on Christ's part. He's trying to instruct this guy to say, "Look, you can't do it. And even if you could do it, you wouldn't do it. So let's, let's talk about mercy instead and what that looks like." And that's where we get to kind of the end of the, uh, the end of the parable.  Jesse Schwamb: And again, we have to remember that we know that the intent here is actually to test or try Jesus, so He's certainly being merciful by using this opportunity not to just put him on blast, but to actually provide true instruction. And of course, like, that was, to some degree, this turning the question back would've been, like, a rabbinic pedagogical technique, but theologically, this is what floors me, is from the jump, Jesus refuses to let this man treat Him merely as one more voice among competing rabbis. Yeah. Instead, He holds that lawyer to the standard of God's own revealed word by, like you said, asking not just what does it say, but how do you read it? Mm-hmm. He's pressing not just for, like, some kind of recitation, but for the lawyer's own understanding and application, and Jesus is gonna hold him [00:42:00] accountable to his own hermeneutic. So by, by the time we get the answer, we know as readers, and all those present would've understood, he already knows the right answer, and he's not ignorant to God's requirements. He already summarizes the whole moral law correctly, encompassing both tables of the Decalogue. And so I think that does lead us then to this statement that we probably should spend a little time on, like, do this and you will live, like you introduced for us. Like, what does that even mean? Because i- it's not, like, in my view It's not like a Pelagian or Arminian concession that law keeping actually saves. I mean, it is the covenant of works principle stated truly inexorably that the law as law does promise life to perfect obedience. But that's the exact problem. I, I like what you said that it's not as if we can't understand what it would be to comprehend or contemplate this perfect law and what it means to fall under the covenant of works. It's just that he also presents for us at the same time this covenant of grace in which life is [00:43:00] granted freely through faith in the mediator who alone fulfills all of these laws' demands. So it's wild in this back and forth that's happening here where it's... I don't even know if it's fair to say this is like the most incredible subtext ever. I'm imagining trying to process this in real time and realizing everything that's being said, not just listening to what's being said and like the technical answers going back and forth. But I think like you said, that the Spirit even here is at work, I would like to believe, in the life and at the heart and the mind of this lawyer who's bringing forward this question with nefarious intent first to test and to undermine, and then is being drawn in almost inexorably into this debate to more profound understanding about a covenant based on works that cannot be accomplished, uh, in perfect obedience except through the mediator who organizes and distributes liberally this covenant of grace to his children for whom he has accomplished at least passively and then actively in his obedience in life and death. And so Jesus' reply is, I [00:44:00] think, thus a very genuine like if that functions to expose an impossibility. I, I don't think he's teaching salvation by works here, of course. He is holding out the law's own terms so that the lawyer and everybody else listening, and even us as well, can discover through this narrative which is about to happen the impossibility of self-produced righteousness, which again is what this gentleman is theologically all about. He's trying to justify himself. And that is precisely the pedagogical strategy like Paul uses later when he systemizes all of this by saying that the law was our guardian or school master until Christ came in order that we might be justified by faith. I think- Yeah ... and it's only because God is good to us and we might sit in some of this teaching, I think this is all in play. So, so I ask you, like, have I gone too far with all this? Like, how much do you think in the real time was being processed? And maybe that's a horrible question to ask because we know the Spirit does this work of illumination and enlightenment, and we're on the other [00:45:00] side of this and have this time to sit and to kind of parse and to really kind of just be pickled in all of this. But there's so much happening here, right?  Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. Uh, maybe I'll answer the question a, a little bit of a different way. I think, um- We often can think about Old Testament religion, if we wanna kinda call it that. We think about Old Testament religion as though it was totally uniform and, um, entirely legalistic. Right. Uh, my- the, the listener is gonna panic a little bit when I say this, so please don't freak out, but I, I think N.T. Wright, uh, and some of the new perspective on Paul stuff is a, a little bit helpful in this, in that it gives us a foil to sorta push against. Yes. The new perspective on Paul is this idea that, um- Paul was not saying that Judaism was legalistic and Christianity is a grace-based religion, right? He, m- [00:46:00] um, N- NPP is not, is saying, um, Paul was not correcting New or Old Testament religion. And where they go wrong is that they say that Paul actually retains this concept of covenantal faithfulness, covenantal nomism fidelity. Uh, where I think, where I think they're right is that this idea that, like, the Old Testament religion is entirely legalistic and Paul was just sort of correcting that, I think that's way too simplistic. And the reason I say that is that the Mosaic Covenant for, you know, w- and predominantly this podcast is coming from a sort of Westminster Confession of Faith Presbyterian perspective, give or take, right? The, the broad Reformed tradition would say that the, the Mosaic, uh, covenant, the Davidic Covenant, all of the covenants of the Old Testament, and we can break them up in all sorts of different ways, but all of the covenants of the Old Testament, [00:47:00] um, with maybe the exception of the Noahic Covenant, and there's some debate about that, all of those are They're not just, like, supporting structures for the covenant of grace, but they actually are the covenant of grace in various administrations. If that's true, and of course we believe that it is, if that's true, then the people of those covenants understood that on some level. Right. Right? So to think that, like, people under the administration of the covenant of grace somehow thought that they were operating under a legalistic framework doesn't make any sense. Jesse Schwamb: Yeah,  Tony Arsenal: that's true. So, so where I think that applies here is I think this person coming forward, it's not as though the concept of the covenant of grace... Again, that's language that we would develop later, but the concept that God graciously saves His people by the counsel of His own will, apart from their works of righteousness, apart from their meritorious effort, that God [00:48:00] simply extends His grace and conveys the cov- the blessings of the covenant of works to those who trust in the mediator, those who trust in the one to come, the, the forthcoming serpent-crushing seed, right, if you wanna use- Right language from Genesis 3. The, the idea that God simply graciously conveys the blessings of the covenant of works to those people Um, that's not something that's alien to the Old Testament, right? It's not alien to the, even to the Mosaic economy. The most law-based of all of the Old Testament, um, covenants, even that starts with the concept that these people are God's people who he redeemed out of Egypt, right? Right. The redemption out of Egypt comes before the giving of the law, and the giving of the law is a result of the redemption out of Egypt. So to think that this lawyer comes forward, and again, this had been sort of corrupted and distorted and had become a very works-based, uh, [00:49:00] meritorious-based understanding. But the idea that this framework of a covenant of grace is totally alien to this guy just doesn't, it just doesn't, I think it doesn't play. And so I think rather than us read this as I think sometimes we do, of Christ as kind of like giving this guy, trying to give this guy an entirely new paradigm, or like the rich young ruler is very much a parallel kind of situation. We read this, this guy comes forward, he's like, "What do I gotta do to earn eternal life?" Christ is like, kinda basically says like, "Well, you dum-dum, you can't. And I'm gonna demonstrate for you that you can't by- Right ... taking sort of like this situation that you can't possibly believe that you fulfilled and telling you to fulfill it." That's the outcome of this. We'll get to that when we get to the end of the parable. Um, he's not trying to give them a new paradigm. He's trying, in my opinion, he's trying to sort of reorient them back to the true paradigm of grace that is present under all of the Old Covenant administrations. So it's not so much a matter of like [00:50:00] developing a new framework and impli- like imposing this new framework on this guy. It's really trying to say like, "Listen- Think about this for a second, dude. Think about this, right? Think about the fact that, yes, you know you have to love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole strength, your whole mind, and you have to love your neighbor as yourself, right? You've answered correctly. If you can do those things, you will live. With the subtext, which I think is what you're getting at, the subtext of, like, and of course you cannot possibly do those things. Right. Right. So what's the alternative, my friend? The alternative is not justifying yourself by somehow identifying who the person is that you have to love the most. The, the, the, um, the... Well, we'll get this when we get to the parable itself, but the, the alternative is... This will be interesting, 'cause I'm not sure that we... I don't know where you are on this, but, um, the alternative is that there's someone out there who shows us mercy. [00:51:00] Right. There's someone out there who takes care of our need despite our total inability to do so. Jesse Schwamb: That's right.  Tony Arsenal: That's the alternative to the covenant of works, is the covenant of grace. I m- maybe I'm, like, hinting at it too much, so I'll just say it. Like, Jesus is the Good Samaritan, right? Like, there's something for us to learn about our own justification here and our own- Right ... like, um, our own need to be merciful, to treat people as our neighbors. But just like we talked about when we talked about, like, what does the least of these mean, this parable, uh, I'm totally, like, burying the lede for next, next week, but that's fine. This parable is not primarily about us figuring out how to do mercy ministry. Right. Like, that's important. It's probably an outcome of this. It's probably something for us to think about. But really, this is actually Christ saying, like, "Hold on a second here, dude." Like, "Let's just think about this." Do you need someone who is going to tell you to pick yourself up off your bootstraps and cross to the other side of the street and leave you to [00:52:00] your own devices? Or do you need someone who's gonna throw you on their donkey, who's gonna bind up your wounds, who's gonna pay the innkeeper, and is gonna pledge to play- pay everything that is owed for your salvation? Right? That's not too on the nose here, I think. Right. And, and I really look forward to, like, unpacking that, although maybe we don't need to now, but I think, like, this parable is so much more about how salvation works than it is about, like, what it means to have a good neighbor and to be a good neighbor. I think we get bogged down in that, and I just am really excited to talk more about, like, what I think this parable actually gets at.  Jesse Schwamb: I agree, and it's happening in the contex

Episode #592: In this, the 7th installment of a series of discussions with Jonathan Crowley, a former longtime practitioner and assistant teacher in the Goenka Vipassana tradition, he reflects on his decades-long relationship with the Goenka Vipassana tradition. For many years he believed the technique was complete, consistent, and capable of carrying a diligent student all the way to liberation. The emotional rewards of early practice reinforced that certainty, and the culture's strong discouragement of outside study made alternatives seem unnecessary. Only later did he realize how those conditions prevented him from seeing the limits built into the system itself. A turning point came when he started reading the suttas. He saw that key concepts—in particular, vedanā, saṅkhāra, jhāna—were taught in ways far narrower than their Canonical meanings. Vedanā was treated almost exclusively as physical sensation, rather than the full affective tone of experience. Saṅkhāra became a simple “reaction” rather than the broad field of conditioned formations. And jhāna, central to the Buddha's description of the path, was omitted entirely. These gaps shaped the expectations of long-course students, who were told that deep meditation would unfold through patient observation of bodily sensations alone. Without strong samādhi, however, the clarity needed for deeper insight never develops. He links these doctrinal limitations to cultural ones: a spectrum of fundamentalist tendencies, discouragement of inquiry, fear of “confusion,” and a social environment where silence and equanimity become tools of conformity. Yet he also speaks with affection for what the practice gave him and hopes his reflections give others permission not to abandon the tradition, but to think more freely within and beyond it.

You're meditating. You're trying to develop your intuition.You're seeking meaningful Spiritual connection. You're trying hard to help yourself. And you still have questions - lots of them. How do I make sense of the things I see, hear, sense, feel or smell during meditation or energy work? Whycan't you tell what's yours and what belongs to your client? Why does your higher power connection feel so disjointed? Jayne names exactly why - and it's not because you're doing it wrong. She walks through her own experience ofholistic meditation, meditating with Monks, as a Celtic Shaman, a previous Usui Reiki Master and someone who has woven her experience together to create Reiki Redefined. BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING TO THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL DISCOVER:● Why meditation - especially holistic meditation in groupsettings - can actually create energetic bleed and leave you picking up other people's “stuff” instead of developing your own intuitive clarity. Jayne experienced this as both a teacher and student; the issue isn't meditation itself, but the absence of safe, sacred space and energetic integrity.● The difference between spiritual wisdom and intuition, andwhy journeying specifically (not meditation) is designed to help you unearth and interpret the messages, symbols, and insights that come through your connection to Spirit. This distinction matters because it's the differencebetween confusion and cohesion in your practice.● How energetic bleed happens in Reiki and energy worktraining when sacred space isn't held - meaning you absorb your client's stuff, carry it afterward, and slowly bleed your own power dry. Sam's story illustrates this: after Usui Reiki training without foundational energetic integrity, she became so energetically porous that meditation made it worse,not better.● Why Spirit-led Reiki Journeying is foundational, notadvanced for energy work specifically - it's the structural practice that teaches you how to hold space ethically, develop direct relationship with spiritual wisdom, and discern what “belongs” to you versus what isn't. This is what allows you to work with your gifts safely and facilitate potent healingwithout looking outside yourself for answers.And while you're here, I'd love to connect on Tiktok & Instagram @reikiredefined.Also, make sure to tag me in your stories @reikiredefined.Live lead & serve from the power of your own truth - Spirit-led Reiki Pathway: https://www.reikiredefined.com/spirit-led-reiki-pathway/Stop absorbing your clients' energy: https://www.reikiredefined.com/stop-absorbing-your-clients-energy/No cost non guru community with no hierarchy or all knowing behaviour: https://www.reikiredefined.com/free-community/Essays on power, ethics & authority: https://jaynegoodsir.substack.com/UNDILUTED (a weekly round up that encourages us to question what we've inherited, trust our direct experience, and remain curious about what we know to be true): https://reiki-redefined.kit.com/6629991732

In this message from Joshua 1:1–9, David Platt exhorts us to trust in God's presence and cling to his Word in every circumstance.Explore more content from Radical.

ਸਲੋਕੁ ਮਃ ੩ ॥ ਸਤਿਗੁਰ ਕੀ ਪਰਤੀਤਿ ਨ ਆਈਆ ਸਬਦਿ ਨ ਲਾਗੋ ਭਾਉ ॥ ਓਸ ਨੋ ਸੁਖੁ ਨ ਉਪਜੈ ਭਾਵੈ ਸਉ ਗੇੜਾ ਆਵਉ ਜਾਉ ॥ ਨਾਨਕ ਗੁਰਮੁਖਿ ਸਹਜਿ ਮਿਲੈ ਸਚੇ ਸਿਉ ਲਿਵ ਲਾਉ ॥੧॥ Core MessageThis passage highlights the necessity of absolute faith in the True Guru (Satguru) and the Divine Word (Shabad) as the only pathway to inner peace, liberation from ego, and direct connection with God.Key ThemesTrue Faith vs. Empty Rituals (Shalok, 1st Section): Merely visiting the Guru repeatedly without inner devotion, faith, or love for the Word brings no peace. True connection occurs naturally when a follower aligns with the Guru's teachings and directs their focus toward the Eternal Lord.Overcoming Ego and Illusion (Shalok, 2nd Section): Seeking and serving a true spiritual guide removes the cycle of spiritual suffering and anxiety. Meditating on the Word burns away ego and tears down the veil of falsehood, allowing truth, self-discipline, and deep internal tranquility to enter. Meeting such a Guru is ultimately a gift of divine grace.The Absolute Authority of God (Pauree): The sovereign power of God surpasses all earthly courts or human authority. While one can flee human judgment, no one can escape God's realm. Those who harbor God within their hearts receive divine honor, and even worldly forces yield before them. Meditating on the Lord's Name is a rare blessing granted through grace.

Associate Pastor Jordan Gentes continues the sermon series "Rhythms of Renewal" with the message "Meditating on Christ."

Keilee Webb is a field staffer with K-Life in Missouri and serves as summer staff with Fuge Camps. On this episode of the Ordinary Christian Podcast, Keilee shares her journey of faith, discipleship, and ministry, emphasizing the importance of mentoring, and discipleship with a special emphasis on her heart for discipleship among to and among young women. Keilee also discuss the role of God's Word in her daily life and the value of having parents who are seeking to live out their faith authentically, even when it isn't perfect.Key TopicsDifferences in discipling women and menThe role of the Holy Spirit and God's Word in growthBuilding trust and sisterhood in discipleshipThe importance of community and church involvementPersonal faith journey and sanctificationSound Bites“Discipleship is sharing our lives with others”“Women's brains are like spaghetti, men have boxes”“Renew your mind in truth through God's Word”Chapters00:00 Introduction to Kylie Webb and Her Ministry00:28 Kylie's Background and Ministry Focus01:17 Discipling Women vs. Men: Key Differences02:13 Biblical Foundations for Discipleship (1 Thessalonians 2:8)03:39 Understanding Gender Wiring and Discipleship Approaches04:23 The Imago Dei and Discipleship Seasons05:16 Comfort Levels in Mentoring Men and Women07:14 Connecting with Younger Women and Trust Building09:28 The Role of Experience and Age in Discipleship11:00 Starting Discipleship at a Young Age12:17 Kylie's Faith Journey and Salvation Testimony15:56 College Years and Spiritual Growth16:25 Recent Pivotal Moments in Faith and Discipleship22:22 Seeking God's Will Through His Word24:25 Renewing the Mind and Daily Discipleship26:38 Meditating on Scripture and Holy Spirit's Role28:58 Practical Daily Walk with Christ34:41 The Role of Family and Personal Faith in Discipleship42:20 Kylie's Ministry at K-Life and Community Engagement47:28 Young Adults' Hunger for Truth and Community51:40 Favorite Scripture and Its SignificanceK-Life MinistriesEphesians 2:8-9Romans 12:2Colossians 3:1-2RESOURCES

ജ്ഞാനത്തോടും വിവേകത്തോടും ജീവിക്കുക | Walking In Wisdom And Understanding | Malayalam Christian Message | Br. Damien Antony | Morning Glory 1989 | 05 Aug 2026വിവരങ്ങൾ അറിയാം, പക്ഷേ ജീവിതത്തിന് കൃത്യമായ ദിശ ലഭിക്കുന്നില്ലേ? ദൈവത്തിൻ്റെ ജ്ഞാനവും വിവേകവും അനുഭവിക്കാൻ ഈ വചനം ശ്രദ്ധിക്കുക.Walking in wisdom and understanding is essential for every believer navigating spiritual warfare, career challenges and daily life. True divine knowledge surpasses human education, illuminating the mind through the Holy Spirit just as Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego experienced in captivity. While secular knowledge sharpens intellectual capacity, only God brings true spiritual illumination and revelation. Knowledge understands what facts are, but understanding connects those facts to purpose, while wisdom teaches practical application. Believers must actively seek divine guidance, prioritizing scripture over endless distractions. Biblical principles emphasize that wisdom brings solutions to impossible situations, elevating individuals into positions of influence, excellence and integrity. True excellence combines godly character with professional competence, making believers trusted counselors in a broken world. Meditating daily on the Word of God opens doors, destroys spiritual darkness and releases the divine spirit of excellence into every area of life.ദൈവവചനത്തിൻ്റെ അനുഗ്രഹങ്ങൾക്കായി Blessing Today ചാനൽ ഇപ്പോൾ തന്നെ Subscribe ചെയ്യൂ! ✨പുതിയ വീഡിയോകൾക്കായി Bell Icon അമർത്തുക.

Do you have a real passion for God in your daily life? In this episode of Words From The Word, Pastor Roderick Webster of Good News Baptist Church in Sint Maarten opens Psalm 63 and Psalm 91 in the King James Version to show us what a passionate believer actually looks like — not just on Sunday, but in the quiet moments, on the bed, in the night watches, and in the storms of life.You might be asking: Is it okay to pray lying down in bed? How can I find peace when the world around me feels fearful and uncertain? What does it really mean to hide under the shadow of God's wings? How do I stay close to God when life pulls me in every direction?In this devotion you will discover:- The passionate believer meditates on the Lord even in the night watches (Psalm 63:6)- Sweet meditation on God's Word opens your spiritual eyes (Psalm 104:34)- Hiding under His wings brings real confidence and joy about the future (Psalm 91:1-7)- God's strength upholds you moment by moment — but you must cling to Him, not follow afar offIf this devotion blessed you, please like, leave a comment, share it with a friend, and subscribe so you never miss a word.WordsFromTheWord #KJV #BibleDevotion #ChristianLiving #HolySpiritStay connected with GNBC:

Certified Consulting Hypnotist Shawn Mossell joins Bob Sirott to talk about the importance of meditation, how you can stay in the moment as you meditate, and why giving yourself permission to relax is important. He also discusses why it’s a good sign if you fall asleep while you meditate, as well as leading us in a […]

2026-08-02 - Sermon by Pastor Jason Huntsinger - Today Jason spoke about the benefits of meditating on Scripture and acting on what we have learned.

Text Us Your Feedback! (Likes, Dislikes, Guest/Conversation Recommendations). Toby Sola has spent two decades teaching meditation — years of it inside a monastery, refined through close work with world-renowned teacher Shinzen Young. Today he runs Bright Mind, an app built on one guiding principle: as simple as possible, but no simpler.In this conversation, Toby and Boysen talk about what monastic life actually teaches you — not mystical secrets, but community and humility, the two things that turned out to matter most. They dig into why so many men try meditation once, get frustrated with their own "monkey mind," and never come back — and what's usually missing (hint: it's often not more discipline, it's community and structure). Toby walks through how Bright Mind is designed as a guided journey rather than a random library, so progress actually builds instead of resetting every time you open the app.The conversation goes deep into the parts of practice nobody warns you about: the doubt that shows up right when things start to open up, the strange sense of space and time dissolving, and the nihilism that can surface when you get quiet enough to really look. Toby's take is grounded and useful — sometimes the answer isn't more meditation, it's fixing something in your actual life: a relationship, a career decision, a worldview you're ready to let go of.Whether you've never meditated or you've been sitting for years, this episode offers a clear, unpretentious map for a practice that's often made either too complicated or too watered down to matter.Go to the Brightmind App - https://www.brightmind.com/Use Code MKP to get a free month!  Hearing the call? We're here. https://mkpusa.org BetterHelp: Get 10% Off Your First Month Of Therapy The ManKind Podcast has partnered with Betterhelp to make it easier for listeners to access licensed mental health therapists who can aid them in their mental health journey. Brandon and Boysen stand by this service as they use BetterHelp for their therapy needs.#Sponsorship #AdSupport the show

Thought to share? Send me a text...Have you ever wondered why some Christians remain rooted and full of peace through life's hardest seasons while others feel spiritually exhausted and easily shaken?In a world filled with endless distractions, opinions, and social media, it's easy to spend more time meditating on everything except God's Word. Psalm 1 offers a timeless invitation to delight in Scripture, develop deep spiritual roots, and build a faith that remains steady no matter what season you're facing.Discover what it truly means to delight in and meditate on God's Word instead of simply reading it. Learn why Scripture compares a faithful believer to a flourishing tree and how that picture applies to your everyday life. Walk away with practical encouragement to cultivate stronger spiritual roots that produce lasting fruit through every season. Press play to discover how Psalm 1 can help you build a deeply rooted, flourishing faith that stands firm no matter what life brings.New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday mornings.To connect with Betsy for speaking, resources, or curriculum head to https://betsymarvin.com/contact-me/For access to past podcasts and transcripts, head tohttps://betsymarvin.com/podcasts/A Christian podcast centered on Jesus, the Bible, and God explores faith through the Old Testament and New Testament, sharing Bible stories and Bible explained insights to help women of faith and Jesus followers grow in faith, strengthen their relationship with God, and know God more deeply through Bible study, women Bible study, and practical Christianity, all while encouraging spiritual growth, understanding identity in Christ, and learning to understand Bible teachings to become closer to God.

People are now meditating in coffins… and yes, this is a real thing. In this episode of Make You Crunch Podcast, we dive into one of the strangest wellness trends making headlines: people climbing into coffins to meditate, reflect on life, and supposedly reduce stress. We break down what coffin meditation is, why people are doing it, and whether this bizarre self-care trend is deep, creepy, or just plain weird.If you love weird news, strange internet trends, bizarre true stories, and crazy wellness fads that sound fake but are actually real, this episode is for you. Tune in as we react to one of the wildest meditation stories out there and ask the question: have self-care trends officially gone too far?

Checking if our notion of the body corresponds with what the body actually is Experiences from witnessing an autopsy Contemplating the impermanence of the body Reducing sexual attraction by contemplating causes, nature and result of body Quotes from Nagarjuna and Shantideva Mindfulness of the the four elements Understanding the properties of earth, water, fire and […]

How does meditating on Krishna's romantic pastimes conquer lust? Not through repression — through a higher meditation. In classical yoga, the very first demand is to root out every vestige of erotic thought. With the meditators on Krishna, the romantic mood became the queen of all meditation. The gopīs' love is the diametric opposite of lust — being entirely selfless. Meditating on something so pure reprograms the heart from within — the counterfeit simply loses its pull. Raghunath and Kaustubha complete all five chapters of the Rāsa Līlā. Krishna's pastimes are not the product of material desire. They are its antidote. And anyone who hears them faithfully will attain pure devotion and quickly conquer the disease of the heart. Srimad Bhagavatam 10.33.35-39 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

Meditating on God's Word is so much more than reading a verse, checking the box, and moving on with the rest of your day. It's choosing to stay with it, to slow down, think deeply and let God's truth settle into your heart.SHARE HOW GOD IS USING THIS PODCAST!Support the show

How does meditating on Krishna's romantic pastimes conquer lust? Not through repression — through a higher meditation. In classical yoga, the very first demand is to root out every vestige of erotic thought. With the meditators on Krishna, the romantic mood became the queen of all meditation. The gopīs' love is the diametric opposite of lust — being entirely selfless. Meditating on something so pure reprograms the heart from within — the counterfeit simply loses its pull. Raghunath and Kaustubha complete all five chapters of the Rāsa Līlā. Krishna's pastimes are not the product of material desire. They are its antidote. And anyone who hears them faithfully will attain pure devotion and quickly conquer the disease of the heart. Srimad Bhagavatam 10.33.35-39 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

Sermon from 07-19-2026

Please join us for this new series entitled Meditating With the Masters.  In this meeting we will be asking the Higher Beings and in particular Masters in various known and unknown traditions to assist us in the development of our consciousness and subtle bodies.  These Masters are particular to each person in the meeting and your personal connections will be invoked both in the transmission and meditation.In this particular meeting, we will be asking the Divine, Our spiritual guides and Teachers, and the Holy Masters to assist us in downloading the virtue of forgiveness in particular from a non-dual perspective.  From this perspective of unity, the hurts and mistakes either done to us or that we have done no longer have any effect.  We ask from these evolved beings the capacity to see this life and our experience from this non-dual perspective of unity consciousness.After the 40 minute transmission we will then do a Pillar of Light meditation meant to download these patterns into our subtle bodies and consciousness.  In particular we will be focusing on the further opening and development of the heart chakra and its connection to the pineal chakra in the head.  This will work to alchemically connect the head and the heart through the central channel of energy.  A clean flow of prana can then occur to further develop the head and the heart which leads to universal love, compassion, and higher state of clairvoyance.If you would like to further your study on this topic we will be using the book The Masters and the Path by C.W. Leadbeater as a textbook for this series.This episode is the energy transmission of the event.

Meditating on the 6th doctrine mentioned in the Introduction to the Sermon Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God, needed to be explored deeper. And 2 more fearful teachings in this doctrine.

You've listened to Neville's words. Now practice living from them. Join Unlock God Mode at unlockgodmode.org and begin a 30-day journey into state, assumption, self-concept, and conscious creation.  ------------------------ Start here: nevillegoddard.com – download Neville Goddard's most powerful book free and receive weekly insights to help you manifest.  ------------------------ NEW PODCAST: Follow the brand new Neville Goddard Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favourite podcast platform. The Neville Goddard Podcast is dedicated to bringing Neville's timeless ideas into a modern, immersive format you can return to again and again. This is a modern faithful interpretation of Neville Goddard's most powerful teachings. Listen to Episode 1 on Spotify → Listen to Episode 1 on Apple Podcasts →   ---------Neville once said, “Assumption, if persisted in, will harden into fact.” That one truth is enough to change your life. The question is, how do you live from that place, day by day? That's exactly what Unlock God Mode was created to help you do.If you've been waiting for a sign to take Neville's teachings deeper and make them the rhythm of your daily life, this is it. Start your journey now: unlockgodmode.org. ---------He Is Meditating Me (Neville Goddard, 1963 Lecture) ***Download the free Neville Goddard PDF Guide at manifestwithneville.com - Discover the transformative power of Neville Goddard's wisdom with this FREE 60-page guide on his 12 timeless principles of manifestation and reality creation.★ Follow the podcast for daily lectures from the mystic Neville Goddard ★FREE RESOURCES:• Join the FREE Neville Goddard newsletter• Join the FREE Telegram Channel• Feeling is the Secret • Full Audiobook* * *The James Xander Trip Podcast:• Listen on Spotify• Listen on Apple Podcasts• Listen on YouTubeDIVE DEEPER:• The Unlock God Mode Course• The Infinite Wealth Guided Meditation* * *ABOUT NEVILLE GODDARD:Neville Goddard (1905-1972), was an English writer, speaker and mystic. He grew up in Barbados and moved to the United States of America as a young adult. Neville Goddard was perhaps the last century's most intellectually substantive and charismatic purveyor of the philosophy generally called New Thought. He wrote more than ten books under the solitary pen name Neville, and was a popular speaker on metaphysical themes from the late 1930s until his death in 1972.Possessed of a self-educated and uncommonly sharp intellect, Neville espoused a spiritual vision that was bold and total: Everything you see and experience, including other people, is the result of your own thoughts and emotional states. Each of us dreams into existence an infinitude of realities and outcomes. When you realize this, Neville taught, you will discover yourself to be a slumbering branch of the Creator clothed in human form, and at the helm of limitless possibilities.Neville's thought system influenced a wide range of spiritual thinkers and writers, from bestselling author Dr. Joseph Murphy to Rhonda Byrne and Wayne Dyer.He has inspired and continues to inspire millions of readers around the world.* * *SOCIALS:• Neville Goddard Newsletter• Neville Goddard Telegram• Neville Goddard Instagram• Neville Goddard Threads• Neville Goddard Twitter• Neville Goddard YouTube* * *ABOUT THE COURSEUnlock God Mode is a transformative 30-day course designed to accelerate your journey towards greater wealth, love, and success through a deeper understanding and manipulation of your reality.  Comprising of 30 audio lessons, this course unfolds as a self-paced, introspective expedition into reality creation, aiding you in elevating your consciousness to what's referred to as the God Mode. Throughout this journey, practical tools will be provided daily to help enrich your life with more love, money, and success by altering your mental models and perceptions. This course combines theory and hands-on experience to create a unique deep dive into manifestation, consciousness, and reality creation. Join me on an extraordinary, 30-day adventure (1 lesson per day) and watch your reality transform. Begin the Unlock God Mode experience today »* * *Follow Neville Goddard on Telegram, Instagram, Threads, Twitter, and YouTube.★ Join the FREE Neville Goddard newsletter ★» For the Neville Goddard listener: Access the 30-Day Unlock God Mode Program «----------

Meditating on the 6th doctrine mentioned in the Introduction to the Sermon Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God, needed to be explored deeper. And 2 more fearful teachings in this doctrine.

Nocturnal Worlds is certainly a curious podcast. A unique mix of science, nature, meditation, and lush soundscapes from Audiocraft, an Australian production company. Why mix science education and meditation? Olivia O'Flynn, the host and producer of Nocturnal Worlds, lays out the how and why of the show. 

This is a sort of book report Jeff brings after reading Sarah Allen, The Way of Water and Sprouts of Virtue (Chinese Philosophy Culture). We discuss how in ancient China, the root metaphor of water was the focus itself. It's not as if water is a metaphor for an abstract reality. Its flow is the flow. Meditating on water is to glimpse the Tao, not an object lesson for some ideology.

Our Spiritual Formation Director, Blake Zimmerman, begins our new teaching series, Summer in the Psalms.

Life can feel heavy. Worry settles into our minds, tension finds its way into our bodies, and burdens quietly accumulate. In this gentle Scripture meditation, Alisa Keeton invites you to intentionally pause and place yourself in a posture of receiving. As you settle into stillness, you'll be encouraged to notice where you're carrying weight, stress, or concern and welcome God into those places. This is a sacred invitation to say, "God, I need You. Come find me." Meditating on Psalm 139:7–12, you'll be reminded that there is nowhere you can go beyond God's loving presence. He surrounds you with His wraparound care, hems you in on every side, and meets you right where you are. As He finds you, He brings peace, lightness, and the reassurance that you do not have to carry life's burdens alone. Come as you are. Bring what hurts. Bring what feels heavy. God's presence is already near. Anchor Scripture "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?" — Psalm 139:7–12 How to Use Be Still and Be Loved Find a comfortable, quiet place and press play on this gentle biblical meditation. Allow Alisa Keeton to guide you through Scripture, prayer, and moments of stillness as you rest in God's presence and receive His love. Ready to Go Deeper?