Pleasing God Podcast
Pleasing God Podcast
Staying Faithful When Life Gets Hard
Jonathan and Katelyn return with a fresh start in Season 4, sharing life updates and discussing the challenges and blessings of remaining faithful to God during difficult seasons.
• Season 4 begins with personal updates, including the addition of twin boys to their family of seven children
• Biblical perspective on faithfulness from James 1:2-4 - counting trials as joy because they produce steadfastness
• Four practical ways to remain steadfast: relying on relationships, immersing in Scripture, preaching the gospel to yourself, and maintaining proper perspective
• The importance of church community in supporting believers through challenging times
• Shifting focus from self to serving others during difficult seasons as modeled by Christ
• Galatians 6:9-10 encourages us not to grow weary in doing good, knowing we will reap a harvest
• A reminder that trials are temporary, but the character they develop is lasting
Weekly episodes will drop every Tuesday morning, with a new Pleasing God Weekly newsletter available on Wednesdays. Subscribe on Substack through the link in the show notes. If this show blessed you, please share it with someone who might need encouragement.
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Hi and welcome back to the Pleasing God podcast, a show focused on helping Christians to think biblically, engage practically and live faithfully for the glory of God. I'm your host, jonathan Soule, and I'm joined with Kaitlin Soule. Hey, what's going on?
Katelyn:Not much.
Jonathan:Okay, well, what do you?
Katelyn:want to talk about. I think we're going to, in part, talk about just a fresh start on the podcast.
Jonathan:Season four Season four, episode one yes, all right.
Katelyn:So a little bit about that.
Jonathan:Give a little life update where you've been. We haven't heard your voice in months. I think my last recording was right before things got really, really, really busy into the summer. So, yeah, we want to give some updates on the podcast, talk a little bit about where we're going, what we want to do in season four, fresh start, reboot and also on this episode, I want to talk about faithfulness. And also on this episode, I want to talk about faithfulness, remaining faithful, living faithfully even when it gets hard. Those hard seasons and I think we've experienced some of them Maybe we can share be an encouragement, help us to think biblically, talk about it practically, ultimately the point of the show to live faithfully.
Jonathan:So I think it's a great thing to talk about. Talk about, yeah, sure. So I want to give some updates, want to just like let people know what's been going on in the soul home sure?
Katelyn:uh well, we added two new members to our family, jack and miles are they dogs? No, they're twin boys, wow, so we had them in February. So obviously, with that, just figuring out life as a family of nine, seven children, yeah, so that was a huge shift in our life. We've also had a lot of ministry over the summer, even some difficulties in ministry over the summer, and then now rolling into kind of those fall rhythms.
Jonathan:I love the fall rhythms.
Katelyn:Yeah.
Jonathan:Kind of the back to school vibe. Church schedule and work seems to hit the norm and it's just fun.
Katelyn:Yeah, it's crazy. It's crazy we have full, full weeks. But I like having the things that kind of keep our family on track, our rhythms. So yeah.
Jonathan:That sounds hard. It's a lot. Yeah, it's a lot. So how do you remain faithful in the midst of that hard? I mean seven kids homeschooling.
Katelyn:Yeah, faithful to what? Faithful to the Lord, faithful to the ministry that has for me faithfulness in the church. What do you mean by yes? That's great, yeah.
Jonathan:Can we talk a little?
Katelyn:bit about that. It's broad.
Jonathan:Yeah, it's broad, but we're called to live lives of faithfulness right. I mean preaching through 1 Timothy right now and the last message on Paul's qualifications for deacons, and when he addresses the wives or the women there, one of the things that he says of them is that they are faithful in all things, and so when you ask, that's a lot of pressure.
Katelyn:Whoa, yeah, it's a qualification for the office, and so, yeah, just, I don't know thinking about being faithful, I think, thinking, if we're thinking just in this past year, seven, eight months, I think, taking it in season, so I would say like the newborn stage, when we had two babies and we were figuring out life, taking a step back from kind of outside duties, outside ministries, outside things and kind of focusing on the family and being faithful within, just kind of getting by to the next feeding or getting by to the end. What I mean is the home and the family and the babies were what we were being faithful to for a short amount of time.
Jonathan:Sure, and even still. I mean they're still alive.
Katelyn:Yes, but there's a lot of learning and growing and change, and God was faithful to us in our relationship, being able to maneuver a lot of moving parts within our family and still giving the other five what they needed as well. Then, as we adjusted to that, going into the summer and just being faithful in each ministry task that we were given and needed to get done, and so making sure that I was being faithful and diligent in that.
Katelyn:You had plenty of ministry in the summer as well, yeah, so it's a very broad question, I think being faithful to the Lord and what he has given us to steward our family, our ministry, and being faithful to our family and helping everyone adjust to these new seasons.
Jonathan:Yeah, I totally agree. I mean, when we think about faithfulness in these hard seasons or in trying times, it's kind of like that's when it's tested, Like it's sometimes it can be easy to be faithful when things are just kind of going well and there's not a lot of pressure, but when pressure and hard times come, that's really the test there. And it reminds me actually what James says in James, chapter one, verse two. He says count it all. Joy, my brothers and sisters, when you meet trials of various kinds, For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Jonathan:And I think we're using the word faithfulness and steadfastness at least in my mind. I'm kind of using that interchangeably. Like how do you remain steadfast in the things that God has given you when it gets hard? Because, truth be told, there are times when it gets like really, really hard and you're like I don't want to do this anymore or like I'm just going to cut a corner on this one. Or you know, I'm going to be kind of steadfast in this, but maybe not as well as I should.
Jonathan:But james here kind of says hey, you need to count it as joy when you meet that hard thing, and I'm I just kind of wonder how can he say that it seems to be like in our lives or in general. When you think about what he says here, that's the complete opposite of how anyone reacts to trials and hard things. And I, full confession, when I face really hard things, the last thing on my mind is counting it as joy. I want to figure out how do I get out of this. Most of the time as a man, I'm just like okay, what's the path? How do I do this, how do I navigate this and go to the next thing, and the danger with that is I can miss the point of that hard thing and fail here to see that this is a testing of faith, to produce a stronger faith.
Katelyn:I think we saw an element of that over the summer. We went through something within ministry that was not just ministry, it was personal, it felt personal, it was, it was. It wasn't just oh, it was just an outside ministry thing. It was something that was difficult and emotionally, physically, mentally taxing. And, um, there were definitely times I looked at you and you I was like want to just like get in the car and just like go. We don't even have to have a place to go, like let's just drive. Sounds like a country song, like let's just get in the car and go. And so there were definitely times where we kind of had to together, look at each other and be like no, this is what God has for us, this is what God is bringing us in, and we need to be steadfast, like you're talking about.
Jonathan:And I think you hit on a good practical point too. So we think biblically engage practically. So one of the ways in which we have been able to remain steadfast in the midst of hard things is our relationship right, so that when something hard comes your way or my way, we might be dealing with it personally, but we share that and it helps us to carry the load together. It's so I think it's been so helpful for me, and I'm sure for you as well, just to know that I'm not carrying this hard thing alone or I'm not in this trial by myself. I might carry the lion's share of the load, the majority, but I'm not alone.
Jonathan:And I think, practically speaking, whenever we face something hard, whenever we have a trial, it is helpful, it is extremely beneficial to share that load, to have someone or a group of people that are bearing your burden with you, and that because trials can lead to isolation, great loneliness and put people into some really dark places. And one of the helpful ways to overcome that and when I'm down, I mean two is better than one. I mean we know that from Solomon and I need you to lift me up, I need you to speak that good word of encouragement or just be next to me, and I think that's so helpful. Vice versa, it's the beauty of relationships, so certainly thankful for godly relationships, meaningful relationships that go well below the surface, and I think it's a practical way to help spur on steadfastness in the midst of hard Anything that you could think of. That's a real practical way to work out this faithfulness, the steadfastness.
Katelyn:Well, of course it's definitely important to be in the Word in prayer. I struggle personally with being in the Word daily. It's always been kind of a struggle for me. But making an effort to be in the Word, to know the Lord, to be more like Christ, which I mean he was the ultimate example of faithfulness. I mean he was busy, the Lord Jesus was busy, and he still made time to make prayer a priority, communion with his Father, and he served people so faithfully and he taught his disciples so faithfully and so, being in the word, living out the example that Christ set out, just taking it a day at a time.
Jonathan:Yeah, that's so good too, really just taking it a day at a time. Yeah, certainly we can't overstate spiritual disciplines or habits of grace, whatever we want to call them that build our spiritual formation, our spirituality as we face difficulties.
Jonathan:I mean, the scriptures are the source of encouragement. We shouldn't just go look for encouragement everywhere else, but the word, the word of Christ, is to dwell in us richly. And I just think of plenty of scriptures that come to mind that have been helpful to me. And so I would just double down on that Deposit scripture into your mind and into your heart before the hard and trial comes, so that when the trial and the hard thing does come, the Holy Spirit will call to remembrance the things that you have put in. I'm not a mystic. The Holy Spirit is not going to bring to me a Bible verse that I've never read before. I'm not going to get new information in my mind and in my heart that I have not once deposited there.
Jonathan:You know Psalm 119, the psalmist is soaking in, hiding God's word in his heart. His word is a lamp to his feet, a light to his path. He needs that illumination and that guidance. But he's meditating on his law. I mean the blessed man of Psalm 1, he's blessed because on his law, on God's law, he meditates day and night, and so that blessed life doesn't mean he's not going to face trials or hard things, but he's done the necessary things so that when those things come up, he's equipped and he's ready. Yeah, I'm reminded of what Paul says in Galatians 6, verse 9, where he says Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. And even that verse there just a source of encouragement.
Jonathan:As you're facing something hard, as you're going through trial, as your mom raising seven children with infant or newborn young twins, whether you're a widow and you're suffering and you're going through just remembering your spouse, or you're working long hours, you're at the season of life where you just feel like you're grinding away and you're getting up early, you're staying up late, you're working a ton of hours just because that's where you are in life. You're struggling with health crisis, you're battling cancer. Someone you know is really going through a hard, hard time. The trials are endless, the hard things are all over the place. Maybe you're in a season where you're having great marital difficulties. You feel like you're just ships passing in the night and you know you need to improve it, whatever it might be, and I'm sure that we could think of many other hard things that people are facing.
Jonathan:Do not grow weary in doing good, and that's the point that's being made here is yes, there are hard things, but we're called to be faithful in those things and there's a promise that's made even in this verse In the midst of the trial, remain steadfast, do not grow weary in doing good, because the promise that is made there is that in the due season you will reap. Like one of my favorite lines, and it's not so much in modern translations, but you would read like older translations, like it came to pass, you know, and I think about. It's not what they mean, but like hard things come and then they pass. They come and go, like there's seasons and we just need to recognize that, like while we're in that season, it's not forever.
Katelyn:Yeah, and I think this also translates not just in like a difficult season, but even just a busy season or a full season, or even a season where it's you don't really have a lot going on and it's it's a quiet season. We're still called to do well and we're still called to be faithful and not coast when it's easy and still be diligent. But, yeah, I think we're we're focusing a lot on on difficult season, but even just a season that's just busy might not be difficult necessarily, but just there's a lot going on and so, um, yeah, I think that translates into all of it.
Jonathan:That's hard too. That's a trial too, the trial of balancing time, juggling all the responsibilities. That's hard. It might not be okay. Some of the things I talked about just like really difficult insofar as, like health or failing relationships, it might just be looking at the calendar and saying, whoa, there's something every day.
Katelyn:This week, I think that's where I'm at right now is just there is something every day filling our time for 12 hours, and it's a lot. It's a lot.
Jonathan:Yeah, and the call there remain steadfast, and that even in those things your faith is going to be tested. You're going to feel like there's not enough hours in the day to get the things done that I need, and you got to rely on God's grace and his provision for you.
Katelyn:There are several times, multiple times in the day, where I'm literally just repeating do not grow weary in doing well, do not grow weary in doing well. And just even having that simple reminder, that simple encouragement to myself, preaching the gospel to myself, that I'm doing this for Jesus.
Jonathan:Okay, there's another practical way to remain steadfast in hard full seasons of life. So we talk about relying on relationships that load sharing. We talk about being in the word and depositing the scripture and, ultimately, I think, preaching the gospel to yourself. A gospel of grace, not of law too. A gospel of grace, not of law too. And I think some of us, depending on kind of where we are on the spectrum, might need to be giving ourselves a little more grace.
Katelyn:Totally.
Jonathan:Because we could be our own worst critics. We can be very hard on ourselves and you know what you might have that super full life and you didn't get to everything on your list. That day it's okay.
Katelyn:Yeah, that's a struggle for me. You know that that's a struggle for me, yeah.
Jonathan:Jesus loves you the same. And now we don't give ourselves a license to just be lazy. But we have to recognize that we might not get everything done on our list that day. And it'll be there tomorrow, yeah, it'll certainly be there tomorrow.
Katelyn:It'll just we'll add on to the next day. Tack it on, yeah.
Jonathan:But certainly again, just the desire to remain steadfast. And then the fourth thing I can think of practically is perspective, Our perspective on hard, full difficulties, trials, seasons. How we think and how our mind is shaped by what we're facing will determine how we will act about that. So what's the perspective on hard things? This stinks. Why is this happening to me? How do I get out of this? I would say that that begins the cycle of negative thinking. I call it stinking thinking.
Jonathan:Tells us what the perspective is from the beginning, counted all joy, and I started by asking how can he do that? That seems opposite to everything and the answer is because he knows the outcome and so it's so hard. And this is why I need every other part of those practical things in my life to remind me and to point me and to help shape my perspective. But it's the outcome of the hard thing, the busy season, that James is looking forward to. He's looking past what is hard, to what is lasting, and that's where he says that you might be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing, a well-equipped, steadfast, faithful person. It's as though every trial, every difficult season comes your way and as you are relying on God's grace and His means of grace, all the things that we are talking about here. You get a little bit stronger and then you just get a little bit stronger. It's kind of like lifting weights right or exercising.
Katelyn:The first day that you do exercise is really hard right and the next few days after because you're sore.
Jonathan:Okay, and then you stick with it and you stick with it and you're always doing something hard, but after three months you look back. If you're always doing something hard, but after three months you look back, if you're tracking your progress and you'd say I never thought I could run that far or lift that much weight, right, but I'm progressively getting stronger, I'm becoming more steadfast, I'm becoming, you know, as I'm facing these kinds of daily trials in the gym or running. And I think that's what James is looking at and you can count it joy, not because necessarily you're happy about a trial, but you know what it will produce in you. By remaining steadfast, your faith is strengthened, your trust in God grows, you're more holy. Ultimately, you're becoming more like Jesus, through the right perspective, preaching the gospel to yourself, relying on God's word and having relationships with people. Ultimately, the place that that's found is in the church.
Jonathan:Right To go through hard things without a church. I couldn't imagine the church is so life-giving in that it is helpful. Think about the community, think about even. You know when you had twins, how the church rallied around and was such a help to you.
Katelyn:Oh yeah, we had meals for I don't know a month and a half, maybe People coming over to take the big kids to go play, or my mom coming over, or moms coming over and cleaning our house for us and doing laundry. My mom still does laundry often for us, which is a huge help, but yeah, for sure.
Katelyn:Along with the perspective aspect, though, that you were talking about. Yes, we can look and say you know, we're going to become more Christlike through this, but also having the perspective of getting out of myself and looking to others. So, for example, baseball season is upon us. It requires three days, two evenings and a Saturday. It can feel like a lot, but the perspective change can be we're going out into the community.
Katelyn:We are being examples of Christ to others who might not know him and we're being gospel witnesses, gospel opportunities. There's a little boy that comes over almost daily to come play with the kids and sometimes I want to be like nah, but we don't know why. God is bringing him to our yard to play with our kids and I've shared with the kids. This is a gospel opportunity. So the counselings and the this and that. So the counselings and the this and that these are opportunities to get outside of ourselves to minister to believers or to be gospel witnesses to those in our community and so coming out of ourselves. In those difficult seasons, I had a friend when I was going through a really difficult time encourage me, serve someone, serve someone, do something for someone.
Katelyn:Today, I was just thinking that, yeah even if it's encouraging text to someone, or baking something for someone, or whatever. Do something for someone else today to get out of your own head, your own mind, your own troubles, your own busyness, and think about someone else.
Jonathan:So this past week I was studying a lot on the passage about deacons in 1 Timothy 3. And one of the verses not even in there, but I was on that theme that really jumped out to me was what Jesus says in Matthew, chapter 20, where he says that the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. And that word there, to serve, is the root word where deacon comes from and where Jesus is basically saying I came to be a deacon for you, to deacon for you. And then he says how he did that in giving his life as a ransom for many. And again, jesus is the steadfast man, he is the faithful one, he is the only true one who has accomplished all of these things. He's the chief shepherd and he's also the head deacon, and that's the example there. So your friend's advice is Jesus' model.
Jonathan:Yeah, and it's a beautiful thing.
Katelyn:Yeah, when you were talking about the Galatians 6 passage, the verse following. So you read and let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are in the household of faith, and so coupling those two verses together really is kind of what we do. Yeah, we're going to go through hard seasons, we're going to feel weary, we're going to feel anxious. That's why God Jesus calls us to cast those anxieties and burdens to him Amen.
Katelyn:But then let's when there's opportunity, let's do good to those outside of ourselves.
Jonathan:Do you have a life verse?
Katelyn:Yes.
Jonathan:Philippians 1.27?. No oh.
Katelyn:Philippians 1.27?.
Jonathan:No, oh, philippians 1.20. Okay, yeah, you want to read that for us.
Katelyn:As it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage, now as always, christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. I've had that verse as my life verse since probably high school.
Jonathan:I think that verse applies really well to the subject we've been talking about. I knew that was your verse, I just the wrong reference. I had the right book and the right chapter. I was getting close there.
Jonathan:I mean I was only off, I mean literally verse 27,. Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ. Where I see you close there, I mean I was only off, I mean literally verse 27,. Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ. Where I see you are absent, I may hear that you're standing firm, one spirit, one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.
Katelyn:All right, basically the same thing Close Cool.
Jonathan:Yeah, yeah I don't have a life verse. No, no, I thought it was philippians 3. Uh, philippians 3 was one of the texts that god really used to uh in my early conversion experience. Uh, whatever gain I had, I count as loss. For the sake of christ, indeed, I count everything as also kind of the same deal.
Katelyn:No.
Jonathan:I consider it rubbish. Paul says no, but I have adopted a verse that I would say defines my philosophy and approach to ministry and it's kind of like my signature on my emails. But 2 Corinthians 4, verse 1, paul says Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. And then he goes on to explain what an awesome gospel-centered ministry is. So that whole passage is like my philosophy of ministry. But I remind myself of that On the hard days of pastoral ministry.
Jonathan:On the hard days of pastoral ministry, on the hard days of parental ministry, on the hard days of loving my wife well and seeking to be the man that God's called me to be, I need to be reminded that I've been given this ministry by the mercy of God and even when I fail to not lose heart because the wellspring of God's grace is overflowing and I need to run back to the cross. I need to run to Jesus, where my faith is strengthened, forgiveness is found and I'm renewed, and I think that's so helpful in order to remain steadfast when things get hard. Let's just switch gears here. I think that was really good. Hopefully that's practically engaging and that can be helpful to you. Whatever you're facing. Let's talk just a minute about what to expect coming up. We're out of time.
Katelyn:Yeah, so I think we definitely want to have weekly episodes again. Let's talk just a minute about what to expect coming up. We're out of time, yeah. So I think we definitely want to have weekly episodes again. They might be just you teaching, might be us talking, we're committed to dropping weekly episodes.
Jonathan:Every Tuesday morning is the schedule, one new kind of wrinkle. This is the Pleasing God podcast. We're also going to be dropping a weekly newsletter. I think it's called the Pleasing God Weekly. We're also going to be dropping a weekly newsletter I think it's called the Pleasing God Weekly That'll come out on Wednesdays. You can subscribe on Substack. I will leave a link in the show notes and you can check that out. We'd love for you to subscribe to the weekly newsletter. You'll get podcast updates. You'll get some other kind of life updates that aren't going to be in the show. A little behind the scenes Got some resources that I want to just make available to shed light on. That could just be helpful in your journey, your walk with Christ, pleasing God, helping you to live faithfully right.
Jonathan:Like we're trying to do so and also I just want to encourage you. If you were blessed by this show, I encourage you to maybe share this episode with somebody that you know that might need to hear it and that we can be a blessing and an encouragement to them. We want to just help the body of Christ in this way. So, yeah, weekly shows. We got the newsletter coming out. I've got some special guests lined up, so there'll be some solo episodes with me. Kate, you're going to be on for at least 10 to 12 episodes this season, talking faithfulness and discipleship in the family, talking about some other things with some of my pastor friends as well. So I'm looking forward to the road ahead, season four. Hopefully it's a blessing and an encouragement to everyone who listens. Yep. Any final thoughts?
Katelyn:No.
Jonathan:Well, I want to thank you for listening to the Pleasing God podcast. If you have any questions, I'd love to hear from you. You can reach out at questions at pleasinggodpodcastorg. And remember 1 Thessalonians 4.3,. This is the will of God, your sanctification.
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