The God Journey - 2019

Why Are Young People Turned Off to Faith? (#710)

Fri, 20 Dec 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"What is it that young people see in us that woos them to the Father, and what about us makes them think our faith is irrelevant in their lives?" That's what one listener asked me to do with Kyle, so Kyle Rice is back on the podcast to talk about how we can engage people with the engaging adventure of a life of Jesus, instead of a faith filled with boredom and obligation. Their conversation touches on hypocrisy and how much young people crave authenticity and someone who simply cares about them. If you consider yourself a young person, provide your answer to the opening question in the comments below.

Podcast Notes:
Email Kyle
Past Podcasts with Kyle
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

A Woman’s Gift (#710)

Fri, 13 Dec 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne invites Tracy Levinson back to discuss further developments in the John MacArthur/Beth Moore bruhaha after MacArthur fleshed out more of his views about women in leadership and women in general. Are they more easily deceived? Do they bear less an image of God in the world? Does Scripture restrict them from sharing their gifts with the family? After tackling some email about sexual issues from their previous podcast, Tracy and Wayne unpack their thoughts about the giftedness of women and their participation in God's family.

Podcast Notes:
Previous podcast on the MacArthur/Moore Controversy
Article on MacArthur's Sermon
Previous podcasts with Tracy
Tracy's book, unashamed: candid conversations about dating, love, nakedness, and faith
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Setting a Course for Life (#709)

Fri, 06 Dec 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Arnita Taylor, coauthor of A Language of Healing for a Polarized Nation joins Wayne's daughter, Julie for a conversation about mothering and about instilling the values that will serve your children for a lifetime. What they talk about goes way beyond mothering to consider the life skills we all need to be fruitful people in a hurting world. If we didn't get them from our parents, we'll need God and others to teach us. Join them as they talk about reaching out to marginalized people, being thankful, how difficult parenting can be, and about setting a course for your own life, so someone else doesn't set it for you.

Podcast Notes:
A Language of Healing
Previous Podcasts with Arnita
Email Arnita
Previous Podcasts with Julie
Email Julie
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

A Craving for Change (#708)

Sat, 30 Nov 2019 00:42:59 GMT

Every restaurant has two or three crave items that are meant to make your mouth water whenever you think of it. As A Language of Healing for a Polarized Nation launched in Los Angeles last weekend, coauthors Arnita and Bob were in town to record with Wayne the audio version of the book for release at the end of the year. They took a break from their recording to talk about people craving for a change in our national dialogue from animosity to greater mutual respect even in the face of different perspectives. While the book may be an easy read, living out its message will challenge you at every turn.

Podcast Notes:
A Language of Healing
Previous Podcasts with Arnita
Email Arnita
Previous Podcasts with Bob
Email Bob
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

The Precious Gift of Sex (#707)

Thu, 21 Nov 2019 15:00:00 GMT

[Warning: This podcast contains a frank discussion about sex that may not be appropriate for all audiences. You might want to listen to it before your children overhear it.] Tracy Levinson, author of unashamed joins Wayne for a candid discussion about sex as only she can, spurred by emails we both received recently from different couples asking if they really needed to wait until marriage. Rather than the casual amusement, our society considers sex to be, the act itself bonds us to another person in a way that is so deeply precious, God designed it for the safety of a lifelong covenant relationship. That's the only place to protect our emotions and avoid the pain that casual sex offers. They also talk about masturbation, lust, and dealing with shame where we fall short of the life God invites us to experience.

Podcast Notes:
Tracy's Facebook post about premarital sex
Previous podcasts with Tracy
Tracy's book, unashamed: candid conversations about dating, love, nakedness, and faith
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

“Don’t Go Home, Beth Moore.”(#706)

Fri, 15 Nov 2019 15:00:00 GMT

The recent comments by John MacArthur about popular Bible teacher Beth Moore once again bring into question whether or not Scripture forbids women to share their gifts with the body of Christ. That invites a conversation about our view of Scripture, legalism, women, and the polarization that happens even in the body of Christ. Brad and Wayne walk through that minefield together as they share their own journey in growing beyond paradigms that cemented early in our lives that may be based on false interpretations.

Podcast Notes:
John MacArthur Is No Stranger to Controversy
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Seeking Truth in a World Overrun With Bias (#705)

Fri, 08 Nov 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Where can one find out what's true anymore, when people, politicians, and the media are only cherry-picking the facts that serve their particular agenda? Brad joins Wayne for a discussion about the polarization of our culture and where it might lead and how it has affected their own relationship. How can we have meaningful conversations with people who don't just have a different interpretation of the facts, but a disagreement about the basic facts themselves. They also talk about the difficult relationship between love and judgment.

Podcast Notes:
A Language of Healing for a Polarized Nation
Pew Research on Polarization
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

A Beloved Child of a Gracious Father (#704)

Fri, 01 Nov 2019 15:00:00 GMT

They begin by revisiting their previous podcast about life traveling at the speed of relationships, through the letters of other listeners who are finding the same joy in that reality. Then, Wayne and Julie take a look at the pitfalls and dangers of trying to find our identity in anything other than resting in the joy of being a beloved child of a gracious Father. If not, we will try to find it in something else that can never fill that need—our spouse, our children, our success, our vocation, our gifts, or in other people. It happens even when we are unaware of it and puts pressure on us and others in ways that destroy relationships rather than celebrating them.

Podcast Notes:
Email Julie
Previous podcasts with Julie
Parenting Resources: Parenting by Paul David Tripp and Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Erring On the Side of Love (#703)

Fri, 25 Oct 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"We have to question the intentions of any group that insists on disdain toward other people as a membership requirement," said Brené Brown, in Daring Greatly. Wayne's two coauthors for A Language of Healing for a Polarized Nation, Bob Prater of Bakersfield, CA and Arnita Taylor of Dallas, TX, join him for a discussion on how to live generously in the world, especially with people who we might be tempted to perceive as our enemy. They talk about having a growth mindset that allows you to take in new experiences and learn from them. Their new book releases November 19. If you'd like to be part of the Launch Team for this book or to join the authors in Dallas or Southern call, see Wayne's blog about how to do that. If you'd like to pre-order your book, you can do so at the link below.

Podcast Notes:
A Language of Healing for pre-orders or to RSVP for events around the book launch in Dallas and in Los Angeles
Previous Podcasts with Arnita
Email Arnita
Previous Podcasts with Bob
Email Bob
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Authenticity in Sexuality and Leadership (#702)

Fri, 18 Oct 2019 15:00:00 GMT

You can't be authentic with others until you learn to be honest with yourself. Kyle Rice follows up last week's podcast by joining Wayne again as they respond to some listener email and find themselves in a conversation about the desire for authenticity, and how it is often punished in religious settings, especially when people aspire to leadership. You can be gifted on a stage and still be lost internally. This life is always easier to talk about than it is to live. They also spend some time talking about sexual desire in an age where sex is treated too casually and often dishonestly for those struggling to keep the gift inside God's boundaries and thus experience its full joy and beauty.

Podcast Notes:
Email Kyle
Past Podcasts with Kyle
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Twisting Scripture to False Certainty (#701)

Fri, 11 Oct 2019 15:00:00 GMT

The quest for certainty about God's reality more often leads to error than it does to wisdom and truth. Those who feign certainty are also mostly arrogant, off-putting, and wrong. Wayne and guest, Kyle Rice discuss how our attempts to grasp at certainty often disfigure God and make the life of Christ unappealing to young people today. They also talk about how those they've met who are more mature in Christ are also more humble, holding their views more lightly because they realize God is so much bigger than any of us can comprehend. How do we engage younger generations with the joy of walking with God and embracing the treasure of his wisdom?

Podcast Notes:
Email Kyle
Past Podcasts with Kyle
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Life at the Speed of Relationships (#700)

Fri, 04 Oct 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Welcome to God Journey podcast #700! Who would have thought and Wayne gets to celebrate with his daughter, Julie, as they talk about one of the core realities of moving from religious life to one of growing freedom in God's love. As the world presses us in its mold, it seeks to drive our lives with the responsibilities of survival and the tyranny of achievement. Those will always drive us toward a fruitless and empty life. Wayne picked up a phrase last week in Virginia about life moving at the speed of relationships, which is also how the kingdom of God grows.

Podcast Notes:
Email Julie
Previous podcasts with Julie
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Contemplating The End of Our Days (#699)

Fri, 27 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What happens when you begin to count your days by how many of them you have left? Last week, Wayne was in South Carolina with his friend, Bob Stamps, and they took time out from their work on Bob's book to talk about contemplating our own mortality, not in the morbid sense of dread, but in a way that makes us wiser about the days we have yet to live. In their conversation, they talk about regrets, lessons they have learned and how they view their dying day, whenever it should come. (Note: This was recorded outdoors on the shores of Lake Jocassee, so please forgive the occasional noise from passing watercraft.)

Podcast Notes:
Previous Podcasts with Bob Stamps
Wayne's Blog on The Shadow of Death
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

How Do I Let God Provide? (#698)

Fri, 20 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What does it mean for us to live in the Father's provision, especially if we want to live off the thing we love? Kyle Rice, Founder of Blue Sheep Media and an occasional guest on the podcast, joins Wayne for a discussion about ministry or creative aspirations and learning how God provides for us. There are no principles to guide us here, only a voice to lead us one step at a time. Rather than seeing God's purpose for us as a destination we strategize to get to, we might be better off learning to follow him as his will for us unfolds one simple decision at a time as we take the doors he nudges us to open. They also talk about the complications of raising support from other people to fulfill our vision.

Podcast Notes:
Podcast with Kyle and Jess about starting a new media company
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Stop Doing God’s Job (#697)

Fri, 13 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT

The greatest barrier to people embracing their own God Journey is their overestimation of our own capabilities. In short, we keep trying to do God's job. Wayne's daughter, Julie joins him for a discussion that starts with raising children but ends up exploring the entire way religion has inculcated us into trying to figure out what God wants and producing it in our own strength. But our efforts will never be enough, and then we end up frustrated by our failures. But what if we were never meant to do God's work on our own, but rather learn how to rely on him so that he can freely work in us?

Podcast Notes:
Wayne's Blog on The Gift of the Jews
Previous podcasts with Julie
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

What Faith Really Is (#696)

Fri, 06 Sep 2019 15:00:00 GMT

This summer some leading authors, church leaders, and worship song composers announced that they were abandoning the faith, no longer finding it real or relevant to their lives. What do we make of this trend? Brad and Wayne talk about what faith really is, and if you really have it would you ever consider leaving it? We've confused religious institituions for the faith, and when they are exposed for the flawed systems they are, people confusing losing faith in them with losing faith in God. Faith is not believe in a creed or identifing with a religion, it's the growing trust in a Father's affection that helps me navigate life with his strength and wisdom. That's the kind of faith you'd never want to leave.

Podcast Notes:
Author Joshua Harris Kisses His Faith Goodbye
Hillsong Worship Leader Rejects Christian Beliefs
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Toxic Religion (#695)

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Feedback from two of our listeners take Brad and Wayne back to their two most recent podcasts to talk about "the gift of detachment" as it effects toxic relationships your own family, and the failure of religious thinking that divorces our faith from an engagement with a Living God. Along the way, they talk about why principles alone, even those drawn from Scripture, are not enough to give us the insight we need to navigate our curcumstances with wisdom and grace. Everything can be twisted to please ourselves and stamp God's name to it, which is why learning to follow Jesus often leads us counter to our preferences.

Podcast Notes:
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

The Slow Dance of Transformation (#694)

Fri, 23 Aug 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What would it be like for a child to come back to her mom five years after she had been kidnapped at age four and told during all that time that her mom was an evil person who didn't love her? Imagine the moment mother and daughter come back together, with the mom ready to jump back in where things left off, and the child not even sure she wants to be loved. It's the scene from a novel GJ listener Lisa has been writing. She sent it that scene to Wayne this week and he shares it with Brad because of its profound insight as to why it is difficult for people to recognize Father's love and to welcome it into their hearts. How that mother would have to love that child, speaks volumes about how God seeks to love us when we are most traumatized by the lies of darkness. It's often a slow dance into the reality of his love.

Podcast Notes:
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Willing to Live At Risk (#693)

Fri, 16 Aug 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Brad's back and he thinks he may have the gift of detachment, not from the podcast, but from people and situations that grow toxic. That launches he and Wayne into a discussion about when is it appropriate to exit a relationship and keeping our hearts open to re-engage should something change. Toxicity often comes from someone's desire for control, brought on by their fears and insecurity. Needing to take control is often the source of sin, but growing trust will allow us to be more comfrotable living at risk in the world, and by doing so more aware of the ways in which God works.

Podcast Notes:
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Learning Morality in Grace (#692)

Fri, 9 Aug 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"Thousands of well-meaning Christian parents are asking the law to do in the lives of their children what only the powerful grace of God can accomplish." That's not just true of parents, lots of people think they can follow Christ by rule-keeping rather than being empowered by live in his love. Julie is back with her dad to talk about the implications of teaching our children not only the ways God wants us to live, but also to receive the grace necessary to be empowered to follow him. When God speaks of righteousness he's speaking about how the universe is designed to work and how we can live most freely in it. The also talk about navigating the difficult issues of sexuality that confront children in our day, when they are least equipped to deal with it—in the confused hormones of adolescence.

Podcast Notes:
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Wayne's Blog on Why Follow God?
Previous podcasts with Julie
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Speaking a Language of Healing (#691)

Fri, 02 Aug 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What if a few, determined people could transform the climate of a culture by salting their conversations with a language of mutual respect and compassion instead of adding to the anger and vitriol that is sweeping our country? Along with co-authors Bob Prater of Bakersfield, CA and Arnita Taylor of Dallas, TX, Wayne has just completed a new book titled A Language of Healing for a Polarized Nation. It is subtitled Creating Safe Environments for Conversations about Race, Politics, Sexuality, and Religion. All of them were together a few weeks ago to put the finishing touches on the book and that gave them a chance to sit down and talk about their journey together and about the joys and pitfalls of collaboration to put some godly things in the world. Both have been on the podcast with Wayne previously, but here's a chance to see behind the scenes on their passion to celebrate what they share in common as much as the differences they hold. Their book is a call to expand our relationships and our hearts to include and to respect others who see the world differently than we do.

Podcast Notes:
Previous Podcasts with Arnita
Email Arnita
Previous Podcasts with Bob
Email Bob
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Could the Religious Right be Wrong? (#690)

Sat, 27 Jul 2019 00:34:25 GMT

What if the religious right is religiously wrong? That's the question Paul Swearengin wrestles with in his new book, Joseph Comes to Town. This fictional tale considers how Jesus might have engaged people if he had come in our century, to the current political climate of the United States. A former pastor from a politically active marriage, Paul has a unique vantage point to wrestle with this important subject matter and has crafted an engaging story that will make you think about it yourself. He joins Wayne for a discussion about the current state of politics and how it reflects on evangelicals and the Gospel. They also discuss a Time article about how President Trump manipulates the fear of many Christians to solidfy their support. WARNING: If you don't enjoy honest political dialog, feel free to skip this one.

Podcast Notes:
Email Paul
Paul's website: The Nonpartison Evangelical
Order Paul's Book
Time article: Evangelicals Are Supporting Trump Out of Fear
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

What It Means to Love…, Part 2 (#689)

Fri, 19 Jul 2019 15:00:00 GMT

A few weeks ago Dave Coleman joined Wayne on the podcast to discuss how we can learn to love like Jesus loved. Dave is the co-author om So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore and he's back to answer questions we received after that podcast. They cover the question of whether the referencen to depression in the chart is true of all depression, why children raised in religious environments are often less kind and gracious in the culture than children who have not, and why sin is about seeking control of our lives, rather than learning to trust in the Father's life and character.

Podcast Notes:
Study Dave referred to on the Altruism of Children
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

At Rest in the Storm (#688)

Fri, 12 Jul 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"I don't know how to rest in God's love when I fell like I'm being beat to hell," writes a listener to the podcast, which allows Wayne to follow-up last week's podcast about unanswered prayer. Joining him this week is his long-time friend, David Rice from County Wicklow in Ireland who was diagnosed with incurable cancer a few years ago. Instead of fighting for healing, he felt God ask him just to rest in his love through prolonged and painstaking treatment, including a bone marrow transplant. The process was grueling, but through the process, he discovered so much about trust and learning to see our circumstances from God's eternal perspective, rather than his own selfish preferences. Jesus put kingdom order on everything he touched, but that didn't mean he fixed everything so we could be at ease.

Podcast Notes:
Email Dave
The Joy and Challenge of Aging by David Rice
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

When Desperate Prayers Go Unanswered (#687)

Fri, 05 Jul 2019 14:39:29 GMT

How can you keep believing in God when he doesn't answer your most ardent prayers or fails to make himself known in the darkest places. That's Jim's dilemma, and he's concluded that the combination of his pain and God's activity may be proof that his hope in God isn't based on anything real, but on false mantras, creeds, doctrines, and wishful thinking that he learned as a child. Maybe he doesn't exist at all. Kyle Rice again joins Wayne to help process Jim's email and explore how we learn to trust God in a broken world when he doesn't often respond the way we think love would compel him to act in the face of our need or pain.

Podcast Notes:
Email Kyle
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Thoughts from the Edge of Exploration (#686)

Fri, 28 Jun 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"Anything worth discovering is better explored than explained." No where is that truer than the learning to live in relationship to Jesus. American Airlines pilot, part-time historian, and long-time adventurer, Jeff Andrechyn returns to the podcast and joins Wayne as they share some of the books they've been reading about our recent explorers leading up to the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing on January 20 this year. Their example can provide some valuable encouragement as we learn to go beyond human conventions and ride on the winds of the Spirit.

Podcast Notes:
Jeff's earlier podcasts: When the Maps Run Out and Connecting With the Heart
Wind, Sand, and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Lindbergh by A. Scott Berg
From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne
American Moonshot by Douglas Berkley
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Parenting in Grace (#685)

Fri, 21 Jun 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What does it mean to parent in grace? Wayne's daughter, Julie Williams, is back to continue their exploration of parenting springing off the book, Parenting by Paul David Trip. They are in chapter 2 about grace and the importance of living in it for ourselves, and from that extending it to our children. Raising children to know Jesus is more than impressing the rules upon them but demonstrating to them the grace that makes it safe for us to engage God even as he is transforming us. They talk about the growth curve with parenting and giving yourself the freedom to make mistakes and learn without living in regret.

Podcast Notes:
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

What It Means to Love One Another (#684)

Fri, 14 Jun 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne's co-author om So You Don't Want to Go to Church Anymore, joins him for today's podcast and shares some interesting insight that he has been exploring over recent years. He talks about three basic needs that we has humans have—for love, for worth, and for safety, especially when we freel vulnerable. These needs can only be met by God, and when we don't find this in him we will seek to find it in other people. But humanity can't love like he does and when someone doesn't treat us the way we think we deserve, we'll feel threatened, which will lead to fear and eventually to anger. Depending on our personality this anger either goes inward expressing itself in self-abuse, depression, and addiction, or it goes outward leading us to abuse others and seek to control them for our own joy. The good news is we can reverse the realities on this chart, but finding our love, worth, and safety inside a relationship with God and then share that with others.

Podcast Notes:
Dave Coleman's previous podcasts
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Game of Thrones and the Incarnation (Bonus Extra)

Mon, 10 Jun 2019 15:00:00 GMT

[NOTE: We realize not everyone will have watched this series, and others will have significant concerns about the graphic violence and sexuality it portrayed. This podcast also includes plot spoilers for those still watching it.] In this continuation of a previous podcast, Wayne discusses the Game of Thrones finale with long-time GOT fans, Kyle and Jess Rice. They talk about literary portrayals of power, and how the attempt to force freedom on others always makes a tyrant out of he or she that would be king or queen. It's a story as old as the fall and makes the Incarnation that much more incredible, that the leader of the most powerful kingdom earth has ever known is being built by the Servant of all. Jesus invites us to a kingdom; he does not conscript us, and that makes all the difference.

Here We Go Again… (#683)

Fri, 07 Jun 2019 15:15:00 GMT

Many of you were with us fifteen years ago, when Brad and I discussed a novel we were helping to rewrite and launched a publishing company to put it in the world. It appears some people never learn from their mistakes, because Wayne is about to do it again, in spite of what happened last time. Last November he was sent an amazing story called THE CITY, inspired by a family and written by a first-time author, a young mother of three in France. She wanted to know if Wayne would rewrite the story and help publish it for the English-speaking world. Though Wayne was inclined not to, given what had happened before, he couldn't let go of this story that was too good not to be told. So here we go again, and helping him in this venture and joining him on this podcast to talk about it are Kyle and Jess Rice, good friends who are building the publishing company as well as coming alongside Wayne and in the coming months Lifestream to help expand this message of living loved to a younger generation.

Podcast Notes:
Kyle Rice's previous podcast
Click here for Game of Thrones Extra
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Guardians of a Gift (#682)

Fri, 31 May 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"A power structure that is accountable only to itself will always end up abusing the powerless." So says James Carroll in an article in the June 2019 Atlantic Monthly entitled, "Abolish the Priesthood." As a former priest and Catholic reformer, Carroll concludes the only way to save the Catholic church is to abaondon the priesthood and give it over to be run by the people themselves. His words sound a note that ripples far beyond the Catholic Church and give Brad and Wayne plenty to reflect on and discuss as they talk about how the clerical system is a holdover from the Roman Empire, not the teachings of Jesus or the example of the early believers. A new expression of the church is taking shape out of those who "loved him at the first and didn't let go of their affection."

Podcast Notes:
The Atlantic Monthly Article on Abolishing the Priesthood
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Relationship Is an Invitation (#681)

Fri, 24 May 2019 15:00:00 GMT

You can't force anyone into a relationship, but you can invite them. Julie Williams stays over from last week's podcast to answer some email from listeners. First up is a question about spanking and whether or not it's a good tool for disciplining children. Wayne and Julie both talk about their experiences and perspectives in this area, which have changed greatly over time. They also answer a question about their father/daughter relationship through various ages—both where it worked well, and its failures. They also answer a question about losing that relationship in the teenage years and what parents might do to win back a place in their child's heart.

Podcast Notes:
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Treasuring Your Children (#680)

Fri, 17 May 2019 15:00:00 GMT

For the years our children are growing up in our homes, there is no greater glorious calling than to help them learn how to live fruitful and responsible ives. Wayne's daughter, Julie Williams, returns for their continuing discussion about parenting with Chapter 1 of Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp. The chapter is about Calling and deals with the priority parenting has to have to navigate it effectively. Wayne and Julie talk about experiences from their own lives as parents and as children to celebrate the joy of parenting, whether it be young children, or adult ones.

Podcast Notes:
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Following Beyond Our Fears (#679)

Fri, 10 May 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne's finished up his two-week trip to Europe in Vallorbe, Switzerland at the home of his good friends, Silvio and Dominique Viotti. Silvio has been on a couple of podcasts so Wayne took the opportunity to talk to Silvio about what Father seems to be doing in sees God doing in Europe. Wayne shares some of his experiences in Norway, Italy, and Switzerland and why so many people let fear sidetrack them from the path Jesus is inviting them to explore. Living in a growing trust in Jesus' wisdom is a far better way to navigate life than being driven by our fears. So many people start well and then miss the fruit of the journey as the retreat back into their own wisdom.

Podcast Notes:
Previous podcasts with Silvio
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Heroin, Porn, and Facebook (#678)

Fri, 03 May 2019 09:15:00 GMT

One of the great wonders of our redemption in Christ is joy and freedom of finding our way beyond the brokenness of our humanity and how it manipulates our behavior to capture our spirit. A recent article in Christianity Today invites Brad and Wayne into a discussion about the transformation that comes from a relational engagement with the God who made us and knows how to walk us out of the twisting and isolation of the addictive behaviors of sin.

Podcast Notes:
Christianity Today article: What Can Drug-Addicted Doctors Teach Porn-Addicted Pastors?
"Yes, and”: What Improv Comedy Taught Me about the Annunciation
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Are We Losing Our Spiritual Faculties? (#677)

Fri, 26 Apr 2019 15:00:00 GMT

The podcast begins with an extensive report on Kenya, with all that's going on over there right now. Listeners to this podcast have given over two million dollars to help in a corner of the world where no one else is present to help people who are dying of starvation and disease. It's an incredible story! Then Brad and Wayne switch gears and talk about a recent New York Times article about how the destruction that comes from our social media platforms, is because their algorithms were designed simply for the bottom-line benefit of the company unchecked by any moral considerations. By pursuing the next dopamine hit, we are drawn deeper into captivity and away from the contemplative spaces that allow us to engage him.

Podcast Notes:
Big Tech's Original Sin in the NY Times
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Parenting from Respect (#676)

Fri, 19 Apr 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne's daughter, Julie, joins him for this podcast that begins with some listener comments and questions about parenting. They also look at probably the most wicked words ever written about marriage and women, hoping to help women and the men who love them out of any residue of that kind of thinking. One theme kept cropping up in each of these that is central to a healthy and productive family life—respect. To get it you have to give it. Parenting from power will lead to rebellion as kids get older and to disconnection inside a marriage. Finding your way to mutual respect will be a well of life.

Podcast Notes:
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

Convicted of Murder (#675)

Fri, 12 Apr 2019 15:00:00 GMT

James was arrested for murder, eventually convicted, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. No one could have been more shocked at this unfolding tragedy than the mom who had watched her son grow up with faith in God, achieve as a straight-A student, and then be appointed to the U.S. Naval Academy. How she continued to embrace the love of the Father when her worst nightmare was coming true, is the story of Ralaine Cunningham's new book, Burden of Promise. Wayne has known her for over 50 years and joins Julie and him to tell her story and the lessons she learned along the way. (In the photo above: left to right: James, Anthony, Hannah, and Ralaine.)

Podcast Notes:
Dateline story on the murder
Buy Burden of Promise on Amazon
Connect with Ralaine by Facebook, or email
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

What Keeps Us from Truth II (#674)

Fri, 05 Apr 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne and Brad continue their exploration of a chart of 24 biases that affect the way we process life around us and how they can keep us from recognizing the truth, even while we're certain that we have it. If you haven't heard last week's podcast, you might want to go back and check it out because it sets the contest for this one. Find out how the Curse of knowledge can keep you from responding freely, or how your in-group bias will only make you more unaware of what others are going through. And, don't get us started on the Fundamental Attribution Error. This chart provides some fun and insightful rabbit trails to help us live more freely.

Podcast Notes:
The Bias Chart at weforum.org
If You Can Help Us in Kenya

What Keeps Us from Truth (#673)

Fri, 29 Mar 2019 15:00:00 GMT

What if the thing you believe to be true with all of your heart and soul, turns out to be false? Then, where are you? Bias is everywhere! It can be eye-opening to realize how much bias we pick up going through life that allows some of our familiar interpretative patterns to keep us from seeing the truth. The School of Thought has published a chart of 24 biases that affect how we see life that affect our ability to actually see what's true. Wayne and Brad work through the chart exploring their own biases and how our awareness of them can help us avoid their pitfalls and live more freely in the world.

Podcast Notes:
The Bias Chart at weforum.org
The latest news from our project in Kenya

The Perspective of Job (#672)

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 15:00:00 GMT

For one listener, our podcast on Seeing God as He Really Is filled him with thoughts of unbelief, or so he wrote to Wayne and Brad. They unpack his concerns as they once again encounter the question as to whether God always wants to heal sicknesses? And, what do we conclude if he doesn't? Living in God's ultimate purpose in a broken Creation, doesn't allow for easy answers to those questions. But he does offer to be our guide through anything life can throw at us. They end with a discussion about Job's journey and the insights it gives us to following God when our circumstances are not what we desire.

Podcast Notes:
The latest news from our project in Kenya

People of the Kingdom (#671)

Fri, 15 Mar 2019 15:00:00 GMT

A gospel that only concerns itself with getting people saved and does not help them come alive in the kingdom where God reigns, is a truncated Gospel that will leave people bored and empty, adrift in the cares of the world. On Wayne's recent trip to Tulsa, he catches up with his dear friend Tom Mohn, for a conversation about the kingdom of God, and why it would be best for us to be more focused on his kingdom than we are on his church. Living in the ways of the kingdom is what brings depth and vitality to our walk in Christ. How do we let this kingdom live through us, as it shapes our lives and reveals his light and wonder to a world in desperate need of him, even if they don't know it yet?

Podcast Notes:
The Demand Project
Tom's Podcast: Good Morning Fellow Pilgrim
Tom's Book: Good Morning Brother Pilgrim
The Unshakeable Kingdom and the Unchanging Person by E. Stanley Jones
Previous Podcasts with Tom
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Am I Supposed to Change My Kids? (#670)

Fri, 08 Mar 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Do you as a parent have the power, or even the responsibility, to change your children? Thinking you do, misunderstands your role as a parent and will undermine the relationship God wants you to have with your children. That's the conclusion found in the Introduction to Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp. This week Wayne and Julie begin their conversation about parenting using this book as a launching pad to talk about parenting from their experience and passions. This week's focus is on not taking ownership of your children, but to see yourself as God's vessel to expose them to him and to his grace.

Podcast Notes:
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles that Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk
The latest news from our project in Kenya

The First Step toward Stupid (#672)

Fri, 01 Mar 2019 15:00:00 GMT

A listener email starts a discussion about calling, especially as it relates to full-time ministry. Brad and Wayne try to parse out the genuine from the contrived as they talk about their own sense of calling and whether or not the pastor's role as it has emerged over the centuries fulfills what Jesus had in mind. Brad is becoming increasingly involved in a local congregation that has asked his help in exploring a more vibrant relationship with God, but it already encountering some of the dynamics that make that difficult. Exalting someone above others and investing them with an "anointing" others must follow, has probably done more to sidetrack the church, creating it in our image instead of his.

Podcast Notes:
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Letting Him Win You (#671)

Fri, 22 Feb 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Wayne and Brad follow up last week's podcast by continuing to talk about the challenge of forsaking our own best-laid plans, to go on a more fulfilling adventure of following him even if we haven't the foggiest idea where he is leading us. Realizing almost all of us seem to prefer him giving us a strategic plan we can follow from start to finish, it is a constant vigil to stay true to his working. None of us can see far enough ahead, nor all the variables God does so we easily end up getting our plans and hopes confused with his. However, to be able to follow him that way, we have to be won into a depth of love and trust that will allow us to be comfortable with uncertainty and unresolved circumstances as he shows us the way through.

Podcast Notes:
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Engaging Real Relationships (#670)

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 15:22:21 GMT

"We have the potential to transform a life (and a) minimal capacity to individually change American politics. That line in a TIME article spurs Brad and Wayne on to a discussion about why we're so passionate to speak out in arenas where we have no power, instead of investing our energies where we can truly make a difference. We have the most impact in the lives of people already around us, and if we could disconnect from our grandiose plans and hopes, we would have a front-row seat to the unfolding work of God in the situations around us. Learning to respond to his unfolding will is the only way to engage his plans, instead of fruitlessly trying to get him to serve ours.

Podcast Notes:
Hidden Tribes Survey
Why Anger is a Wasted Emotion by Dave French
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Fitting In Or Belonging (#669)

Fri, 08 Feb 2019 15:00:00 GMT

"Belonging is being accepted for yourself. Fitting in is being accepted for being like everyone else." That's from a group of eighth graders interviewed by Dr. Brené Brown, but we all know it's true. Our need to belong often drives us to fit into other people's expectations, denying who God created us to be and keeping our relationships incredibly shallow. This is true in society as a whole, but more critically in family dynamics and religious institutions who focus on conformity as a condition for fellowship. Wayne's daughter, Julie joins him for this provocative look at how we can help create environments that invite people to belong, rather than just fit in with our expectations.

Podcast Notes:
Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
The latest news from our project in Kenya

We Were Wrong (#668)

Fri, 01 Feb 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Mark Wingfield, a Baptist pastor from Texas, thinks the three most significant words for the church in 2019 just might be, "We Were Wrong." His column in the Baptist News Global designates seven areas where the church has been on the wrong side of issues that have caused great pain in our culture from racial discrimination, to sexual predators, to women's issues, even to putting more focus on numbers than people. It's an interesting article and gives Wayne and Brad an opportunity to discuss some of the hottest political issues of our day and how humility and owning our mistakes will go a long way to opening the door to those who have been alienated from God by the failures of Christianity.

Podcast Notes:
We Were Wrong by Mark Wingfield in the Baptist News Global
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Addiction or Connection? (667)

Fri, 25 Jan 2019 15:00:00 GMT

Sin will take you further than you want to go, make you stay longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you ever imagined. A recent article in the NY Times outlined the process of opioid addiction and why so many people find themselves and why they overdose trying to get free of it. Brad and Wayne found it an eye-opening article not only to stir compassion for those so captive but also found interesting parallels between drug abuse and the power of sin to rewire our brains for bondage. They also talk about how a growing relationship with God can rewire our brain to break our addictions and how real connection breaks the power of addictive behavior.

Podcast Notes:
Heroin Addiction Explained: How Opioids Hijack Your Brain in the New York Times
Everything You Think You Know about Addiction Is Wrong, A TED talk by Johann Hari
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Podcast #666

Fri, 18 Jan 2019 15:15:15 GMT

Can you believe we've made it this far? When we started, we never conceived that we would still be recording 666 episodes later. What to do with this one? Brand and Wayne decided to use this occasion to talk about the influence of the enemy in our live—the lies he tells us, the temptations he offers, the shame he stokes, and the accusations he foments to destroy our confidence in Father's love and our relationships with others. They talk about the importance of humility in breaking the power of the enemy and looking for the way of escape that Jesus always offers us, no matter how dark our situation.

Podcast Notes:

Free to Trust (#665)

Fri, 11 Jan 2019 15:00:00 GMT

When the greatest joy and peace comes from being free to trust the Father's love for us and his activity on our behalf, why is it so easy for us to lean away from him and trust our own ideas and efforts? Brad and Wayne explore what it is to grow in trust with God and try to help those who feel stuck in their capacity to do that. Where does trust come from? Is it an act of obedience, or is it the fruit of a relationship with him? They talk about desperation and how we tend to find it difficult to trust him when we are not challenged beyond our perception of our own abilities.

Podcast Notes:
The latest news from our project in Kenya

Love That Endures the Unendurable (#664)

Fri, 04 Jan 2019 15:15:15 GMT

Happy New Year to the God Journey family. Wayne and Brad ring it in with their thoughts about how they approach a new year and then dive into a listener's email about how God as walked with him through the most horrendous family tragedies over a significant stretch of time. That invites them back to last week's them and how each of us need to learn to trust in God's love no matter what goes on in our lives. They end with a discussion about compassion for the broken, how religious obligation destroys it, and how it is perhaps the key to seeing what God is doing in the situations around us.

Podcast Notes:
The latest news from our project in Kenya