Faith With Family

One hour on a Monday night changed the rhythm of our home. We set out a simple spread, opened Matthew, and let everyone read: the overworked, the on-fire convert, the skeptic twin, the quiet absorber, the mom who learns by asking out loud. What started as an awkward experiment became a steady ritual that softened anxiety, rebuilt old bonds, and made room for messy, honest questions about God without anyone feeling small.

We talk about how to create a safe space for doubt, why interior change is the miracle most of us miss, and how to translate theology into the everyday—money habits, forgiveness, grief, and the slow work of healing family fractures. Timmy’s plainspoken faith helps reframe “prove it” questions into lived witness: would anyone suffer for a lie? We sit with Spencer’s fear of death and the hard question of grace for the worst among us. We remember a pregnancy scare that ended in a healthy child, and a home project that came in far under budget—not trophies, but quiet signs that provision often arrives without fanfare.

This is a field guide to starting your own faith night at home: keep it small, read aloud, welcome every question, share the meal load, and change the setting when you need fresh air. Church and home feed each other—worship carries us, sermons spark study, and the kitchen table becomes the place where truth lands. Imperfect people reading a perfect Savior is exactly the point. If you’re craving calmer hearts, deeper bonds, and a tradition your kids will remember, this hour might be the seed.

If this resonates, follow the show, share it with someone who needs a nudge to start, and leave a review telling us your best tip for making faith a household habit.

Chapters

• 1:20 From Awkward Interview To Part Two
• 2:22 Launching Faith With Family Mondays
• 5:57 Why Talking About God At Home Is Hard
• 9:18 Questions, Doubts, And Safe Conversation
• 17:30 Different Paths Of The Twins
• 21:39 Spencer’s Fear Of Death And Grace
• 27:49 Personal Struggle, Rebellion, And Return
• 33:40 Reconnecting With Extended Family Through Scripture
• 40:07 Making Space To Stop And Listen
• 46:40 Small Seeds Versus Big Miracles
• 53:01 Testimony, Anxiety, And Everyday Faith
• 59:13 Worship, The Word, And Growth At Church
• 1:05:09 Tradition, Commitment, And Keeping It Fresh
• 1:09:48 Closing Reflections And Prayer

Transcript

From Awkward Interview To Part Two

Launching Faith With Family Mondays

SPEAKER_00 0:42

Welcome back everybody. We'll get right to it. I have to admit, it was at first when we first started recording that last episode. It just seemed weird to be interviewing my wife. Like, because I know you I like what I'm asking you, I know already. Like I know you so well. And so I just had a little bit of it was just seemed a little awkward at first. Like I was like, I'm asking her questions I already know the answer to. And I'm almost trying to talk to her like you know, like I brought somebody in that I don't live with every day. So it was a little strange at first doing that. But I think once we got rolling, I think you did pretty well. You did real good. I hope so. I think you did. So you definitely have to come back now. You're I got you in here once. So yeah, I think we had a good time, and I think we touched on a lot of good topics concerning family, and we decided that we're just gonna kind of roll almost into part two of you know the five family dynamics of faith. And I just decided to call this one faith with family. Because as a family, we have decided to to commit to doing a Bible study every Monday night. And this actually was initiated by your nephew, right, Timmy? So he's the one that actually he had been doing this with some of his family.

SPEAKER_01 2:13

And then I reached out to him and said, Hey, yeah, we're interested in this. Do you want to do it with us too? And he's like, Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 2:20

So he's kind of been on a mission to bring the Lord to some of his family members, and so he's he's had this whole program of doing it. And so yeah, you two started talking about it, and that sounded like something you really wanted to do. And I'll be honest, at first I was a little hesitant because my first thought was like, Well, I've already got the podcast and I have to prepare for the podcast. So sometimes I'm doing that on on Sundays or Monday, a Tuesday up until Wednesday. So I'm like, well, now do I have time for this to do this on Mondays? You know, at first I'm like, I don't really have time to do this. So I was a little hesitant about it. But as in all things, as I said in the last episode, usually you're right and I'm wrong. Because we've been doing it, what, how how long now? Maybe a month, two months.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

I know we you know the holiday had a little interruption there, but I think we did it like three weeks before Christmas, and then we've we stopped because the Christmas and New Year's, and now we've been on for two weeks right now. So, yeah, about two months now. Yeah, a month and a half, two months. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:33

Yeah.

unknown 3:34

Maybe.

SPEAKER_00 3:36

So I've been pleasantly surprised at how much I'm getting from it and how much I'm looking forward to it every week.

SPEAKER_01 3:46

Yeah. Same. Even though I'm the one who wanted to do it, they were still like planning out things and just working, because I work, you work, and just Maggie's school, even though And we're hosting it. Yeah, it's at our house, and he brings us three little kids, which are just little blessings. And but they have to get up from time to time to get them to calm down because they're like nine, six, and four, or something like that's their age. But they're really good kids. I mean, they're they're just in our front room.

SPEAKER_00 4:14

And they can eat.

SPEAKER_01 4:15

They can eat, yeah. Yeah, and we've had pizza a couple of times, and they've brought food, and then Charlie and Latrice are bringing pasta next Monday, so it's working out really nice, and it's just it's good to get together, and we sit down for at least an hour, and we don't even go over a huge part of the Bible, and I think that's what makes it so great. Yeah, because we're really talking about each paragraph, and sometimes it's eat a couple sentences because my nephew is just so he is very passionate about it.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

Yeah, it's passionate. That's yeah, he he's he he's definitely he's all in on this idea.

SPEAKER_01 4:54

He is and how old is Timmy? I don't think he's quite 30.

SPEAKER_00 4:59

Not quite, I don't think. Twenty-nine. He might be twenty-nine.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

Yeah, and he's been on this this journey for a couple years now, I think, maybe two years. But to listen to him and how he was saved, because he told us he was just in his car and then he stopped and he just started bawling. He knew he needed to follow Jesus at that point.

SPEAKER_00 5:20

And I just I remember I worked with Timmy for a while at Dover Tank, and I remember he worked back in layout, so it was like a big table, and yeah, a lot of the younger guys would hang out at that table and they'd all be talking, and one of their big focuses was just the stock market. Like they talked about the stock market all the time, and you know, where to put your money and do this, do that. And Timmy was just Timmy, I think Timmy was looking for that thing that was going to make him a lot of money. It was that that was gonna get him maybe not rich, but just he was just looking for that big score, you know. And he was so I remember he was so enthusiastic about the stock market and and everything that goes along with that, and of course, and he's kind of talking to some of the other guys about it, and they're kind of getting involved in it. And so you could kind of see where his mindset was then as opposed to where it is now.

SPEAKER_01 6:14

It's Jesus, yeah, it is like he is it 100%, and his wife is right there along with him for this this walk, and that and the things they do for the community. Like I he's just such a wonderful kid. And I could have told you that when he was a little dude, he was our first baby, he was the first grandkid to be born. So he he's my first baby because I mean he's gonna be 30, yeah, he'll be close to 30, and my twins are 25. So Timmy was my first baby because we are were we were really close when all these kids were born. So I mean, I was around him all the time when he was a baby. All my nieces and nephews, I was but yeah, just he's always been the sweetest, kindest kid. As are all Tim's kids, all Tim's kids are. I mean, all my nieces and nephews are just they're great, I think so.

SPEAKER_00 7:06

I mean, even they're characters, but yeah, but they're great.

SPEAKER_01 7:09

I'm not I'm not close with my sisters, but as far as Tom's kids, Sadie, Thomas, Samuel, just great kids, and it's Timmy T, Jay Tucker, and Taylor, just yeah, they're just all great kids.

SPEAKER_00 7:25

And I think the first thing to mention about what we're doing is I think we're overcoming what I believe is so difficult for so many families, and that's to talk about faith. That's to talk about God, to have an open con open conversation about him, and to have faith in Jesus and and be able to discuss it. A lot of times, a lot of situations, especially with family, you don't do that. You don't like you don't, you know, you just you just you don't do it. Even if you do even if you go to church on Sundays, and all you just you don't tend to do that at home.

SPEAKER_01 8:07

Even if like like three sets of family go to church together, that's where it ends with most families. You're at church together, you sing your you listen to your pastor, you sing your hymns, and you're done. That's it.

Questions, Doubts, And Safe Conversation

SPEAKER_00 8:18

And you get home and you kind of go your separate ways, all go do your own thing. Yeah. So I think that's the first really important thing is that we're making this effort to say that we were going to reserve this time every week, even if it's just for an hour, to be together as a family and give ourselves that time to to share in the word. And we have a thing where because we started in the New Testament with Matthew, so everybody around the table gets a chance to read, whether they like it or not, right? Yeah, sometimes we have to push the boys to start reading, and usually it's because oh, I see some really big complex names in there I don't want to read because I don't want to mess the name up.

SPEAKER_03 9:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

So you kind of have to push them to read into it, but as as it keeps going round, you can tell like they're getting a lot from it, like they're starting to enjoy that. So, yeah, so we're we're giving everybody an opportunity to be in the word to read it. And I think that's important because busy family lives, you're not giving yourselves any time for that. Right. Even on your own, as just as a person, you know, you say you're gonna do it, you know it's something you should be doing, but you just don't give yourself, you don't make the time to do it. Yeah. So this is a collective effort through family to sit down, you know, have something good to eat, get together, and and just share in the word. And as you said, you know, we'll read a paragraph or two. If we see something that's really, you know, raises our eyebrow and and really gets our thoughts going, then we'll just we'll start discussing that. And what's really interesting is you do have Timmy who's starting to be really well versed in the Bible. You have somebody might like me who is really well versed in the Bible and also the history part of it. And then you have the younger kids who they're just full of questions.

SPEAKER_01 10:19

And me. I'm full of questions. Yeah, you're full of questions. Yeah, I I I know the Bible, but I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 10:24

You're kind of that bridge between Timmy and I and the kids.

SPEAKER_01 10:27

Right, because I know the Bible, but I don't know the details. That's as you found out last podcast. I don't know details. Yeah. But that's why this is good for me, because if we read and discuss, my brain will comprehend that better and I'll be able to hold that. But if I read that to myself, I'll get some of it, but I'm getting so much more out of it this way. For me. Now I know you can read and you can that absorbs right now.

SPEAKER_03 10:52

I enjoy that.

SPEAKER_01 10:53

Right. Well, it's not that I don't enjoy it, but honestly, I don't absorb things like that. And that's just the way that I keep saying that, but that's the way I'm wired. But same with Charlie, too. Like it's sometimes you can't just read it and think that everybody's brain is going to, you know, take that the same way because it's that's not how it is. That just doesn't work that way.

SPEAKER_00 11:13

And I and I think that tackles uh a problem that I think a lot of young people have is it's good, it's good to have those questions, but they may feel like it's not good to have those questions. Because Charlie, you know, we have Seth who comes to church with us pretty regularly. He only misses like if he has work or you know something really important going on, or he, you know, something he can't really get away from. So he he's he's he's really starting to I would I can't say this for him, but I would say he's really starting to have a true relationship with the Lord because he's he's in it every Sunday. Like he m he we don't have to ask him if he's gone. Like usually we can we can expect that he's gone. And then we have Charlie, who it's funny, because yes, he you know, Charlie's got a nice tattoo sleeve, and of course he's got the three crosses, you know. So you can tell, like he believes in the Lord, like it's something he wants to do, and something that he thinks is is important, but he's got a lot of questions. A lot of questions, and a lot of his a lot of his questions are centered around how is this possible? You know, how is it that Jesus could do all these things? It's not possible that he could heal this blind person or make this person walk or make this person rise from the dead. That's just not possible. And maybe a lot of young people would feel like I shouldn't I look dumb if I have the dumb if I think it's not possible, or maybe I'll be looked down upon because I don't think it's possible. So that's like the first hurdle of any believer is just being able to say, I don't understand. Show me.

SPEAKER_01 13:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:03

And a lot of young people don't want to do that.

SPEAKER_01 13:05

Yeah, you know, so they'd rather just say, Yeah, yeah, it sounds like a nice story, but well, in our group of people is just so great because the way Timmy even, when Charlie asks a question that we we all kind of giggle about, we'll laugh. But Timmy is so good about trying to put it into a different perspective so Charlie can relate to it easier, and which we all do too. We'll we'll do that because the way Charlie questions things, but I don't know. And I I think that's that's what's so great is with all of us, I don't think anybody's embarrassed for it, because I ask some dumb questions, I think, sometimes. And and then you guys are like, no, no, no, this is this and this is that. I'm like, oh, okay. And things that I didn't know, like I didn't know certain people were told told certain things. I'm like, are you kidding me? This whole time I didn't know that, you know. But just the way everybody talks to each other around the table is just great.

SPEAKER_00 13:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:58

And Seth never asks questions, but Seth, Seth's definitely a person that can absorb a lot of stuff, like he's definitely paying attention. You can get that, but he doesn't Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:08

Seth is I think Seth already has the faith. He's not questioning.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Yeah, no, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_00 14:14

How is this possible? I think he's already past that. Like well, it's not for me to truly understand how it's possible. I just know that, you know, Lord Jesus Christ is my savior, and he can do all these things. So he doesn't question the possibility of these things. But when you have somebody like Charlie, who they're the same age, they're twins, two different people in every respect, I think. Yeah, even if you look at him, you're like, you guys aren't twins.

SPEAKER_01 14:38

Yeah, you would guess it's like a year or two different in age.

SPEAKER_00 14:41

Yeah. So there's definitely two different mentalities. You know, Seth is very careful about his money, manages everything to a T. Charlie, he's you know, just get some poke. Thank God he's got a latest. You know, it's just like, yeah, because you know, he's just enjoying his time as a young man.

SPEAKER_01 14:56

Which he should. But it's okay. It's okay that they're they're so different that way. I mean, I wish Seth would just let up a little bit to have more fun in life. Yeah. But it's nice to see Charlie and and then Charlie and a latest together that they just have a good time and they they're they're spending their money the right way. They're still having fun, but they're still paying their bills. They're doing everything they should. So that's great. But yeah, just the difference in people. Yeah. We do have a our whole group, everybody's so different.

Different Paths Of The Twins

SPEAKER_00 15:25

And that, but that's the important thing, is that it's you're you're in an environment where it's comfortable to ask those questions, to be in the word, and then to say, hey, I you know, I got a question, like because you're with family. So it takes away, it can once, once you know, everybody's in it and everybody's comfortable and we're kind of having a good time with it, then that's usually when the questions start coming. And I think it just really helps people put their guards down and think, yeah, it's okay to ask questions, which is certainly one of the most important parts of getting started is just, you know, having curiosity, wanting to know, you know, about the Lord and how are these things possible. And yeah, and the way Timmy can explain it, Timmy has a great gift for explaining what in layman's terms. Well, not in layman's terms, but he knows he's he knows who he's talking, he knows he's talking to a 25-year-old young man. So he doesn't try to explain it to him in a scholarly way. Yeah and that would probably be a fault of me. Sometimes I I because I I get so into the history of it and all this stuff, that I tend to explain things in a scholarly way where Timmy can just put it in perspective, like he can bring it to their generation and just say, okay, he was like, Well, okay, Charlie, what if you found out that somebody was paying a lateur to be with you and love you every single day? Like, how would that make you feel? You know, and obviously, you know, hurt that would hurt. It's like, okay, well, that's why you can't, you can't buy your way into heaven, you can't buy your relationship with the Lord, all those things, because if it was built, if if this whole thing was built on a lie, it couldn't stand the test of time. People wouldn't have died for a lie. And he explains to Charlie, all you know, you know, the apostles, and we we we've talked about that on on this podcast before, and so we'll discuss that. And so it gets his wheels turning even more. Like, okay, now he's getting off of how is it possible to how is it possible that these people would stand that would stand for Christianity and do this in spite of everything that they're faced with? So all of a sudden he's starting to think, well, there must be something to this because normal people don't you're not going to go through that kind of pain and death and imprisonment and all these other things if you don't if you don't believe it. Yeah, yeah. There's no way that's true.

SPEAKER_02 18:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:08

That that's that's the gift that Timmy has is kind of taking taking that curiosity and then being like, okay, now now think about it in these terms. You know, quit quit thinking so big, like the big miracles you see every day. You know, and and let's bring it down to you know, yeah, yeah, small, small details and and how would you feel? Like what would you do in this situation? You know, if somebody says, you know, yeah, we're gonna hang you upside down on a cross and flay your skin, unless you say, you know, Christian, you know, Jesus Christ is is not your savior, you know. Yeah, and then he starts going, well, yeah, well, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_01 18:49

Like, yeah, yeah. Because if you didn't know that heaven is your next step, you definitely would not do that.

SPEAKER_00 18:54

You'd be like, okay.

SPEAKER_01 18:56

Yeah, 100% that you're going somewhere much, much better. You wouldn't let somebody do that to you. That hurt. That would have hurt. Whoa. And the thing too with Charlie and a late tress is I feel like a lateress doesn't question things. So I don't think she questions it. I think she has more not more faith, but she goes from the face side where Charlie is just all about you guys, just got to prove it to him. And I don't know what their discussions are like after Bible study, but I I think that they're a little bit different now. And I think that's great. You know what I mean? As a couple, to be you you have each other, because even you and I, we're different when it comes to not Jesus. We both believe in what we need to do, but you are so much better at explaining the Bible and things to me. You know what I mean? Like, and when I have things that I question, you're good at teaching me or telling me. And I I think some some couples need that. Timmy and Emily seem to be about on the same page. I could be wrong, but they seem well, Timmy's definitely just yeah, just just the way he is, is just just wonderful.

SPEAKER_00 20:02

And yeah, he truly wants to get out there and help as many people as he can and spread the word. And yeah, yeah, he's just really he's a really excited and proactive and and willing to make the time to do these things, to be in the community.

SPEAKER_01 20:18

Well, yeah, and he uh I have another son, Spencer, that does not attend because he's not sure what he's doing.

SPEAKER_00 20:23

Yeah, and I was gonna get to that. Yeah, you know, so we've got two sons in it just about every week. Yeah. And of course, Maggie, she's young, yeah. We we could talk about that too. But I didn't know if you wanted to talk about Spencer, but That's kind of yeah a well, you go ahead and explain that.

SPEAKER_01 20:42

Spencer's still at a point where he more and less says he doesn't believe at all.

SPEAKER_00 20:46

Like it's well and and let's and let's if you're okay to bring it up, Spencer has a fear.

SPEAKER_01 20:55

Of dying.

SPEAKER_00 20:56

Right.

SPEAKER_01 20:56

Yes, a big time fear of dying.

Spencer’s Fear Of Death And Grace

SPEAKER_00 20:58

Right. Like and we're not talking like we're talking like huge. And he's so much so that he calls you about it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:05

He calls me about it. Crying because he can't sleep at my night. And he says, Mom, he's like, I just can't sleep. He said, because I just think, what what if I die? What is there? And I said, Spencer, I said, that's why you need faith. I said, you need to follow God, Spencer, because that's one thing that will not scare you. So what if you don't, you don't wake up? You're gonna, you're gonna go to heaven if you're following God. You'll be okay. It's like, mom, I just don't know. And and I mean, this child loses sleep. He's married and I was gonna have a second child and he loses sleep over that. He also gets stressed out or he he's all upset. Like if his wife leaves with the baby, he gets worried about him, and just and I keep telling him, but I'm not pushing him. But I'm like, you you need to find God because that's gonna help your anxiety. That's gonna help all these questions you have, but we cannot get him to come. We can't even he came to church on Christmas Eve, and I was so happy because he told me he wasn't.

SPEAKER_00 22:06

He said he wasn't coming, and then yeah, he showed up.

SPEAKER_01 22:08

He showed up.

SPEAKER_00 22:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:10

And so we we just he's he's not coming yet, and we're just trying to give him a nudge, like well.

SPEAKER_00 22:16

And I remember him saying something to you about how ridiculous is it that, okay, so you know, somebody can murder somebody, and then they say they've been saved, so they're forgiven. And almost as that's that's ridiculous. That's not it's almost that's not ethical, it's not possible, and it shouldn't be.

SPEAKER_01 22:37

Right, right. And yeah, he said that to me too. And and and to try to explain that to somebody that doesn't believe is a hard thing to do, anyways. And I'm like, Spencer, just because somebody believes just because somebody says that, they're not going to heaven, Spencer. I said it's what's in your heart, it's how you follow the Lord. And I mean, don't get me wrong, if you're on your deathbed and you ask for forgiveness, I do believe you can be forgiven because God knows what's in your heart. But I don't think Spencer's looking at it that way. I think he's looking at like even like the most terrible person that's never stinked, God can just say, Hey, forgive me, and you're into heaven. I'm like, Spencer, that's just not how that works. And and and I I really I just don't know what to say to him because and the funny thing is, Timmy is like, we're gonna get him. We're gonna get this kid, we're gonna get him here, we're gonna talk to him because Spencer, even though Spencer's the greatest kid, he's the hardest child of my life. Like he drives me insane. But he is very social. He walks up to anybody, he talks to everybody, he's so kind to people, he's crazy, but he's kind to people. And Timmy's like, just think what we could get if we could get him on our exactly.

SPEAKER_00 23:47

He could very well be one of those people that could really spread the word. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 23:51

And he also, I think, believes that if you fall short, you're in trouble. Like if you go, which we every one of us falls short every single day, we do things we should not do. And and I think that he thinks, well, I do this, so God's not gonna want me anyways. I really think he feels that way. And I'm sure we all go through that like daily, like, oh my gosh, I did this today. You know, what am I gonna do? I'm never gonna make it into heaven, and you just gotta keep, you just gotta have faith and keep going along, you know, keep talking to God and doing the things that you know you need to do and have that relationship because that's the most important thing. But he's just what is he, 23 years old now. So he's that he's at that age. It is a hard age. Because I can remember that's when I knew that there was God, was when I was a well, no, when I was a teenager at 16. Like that's when my faith just got so much bigger. And but then I went through so many years where it was just put on a back burner, as you did, but we did it. Mine was just my family wasn't part of it. I had my kids, just went to church, but that was that was went to church on Sundays. We went home, never spoke of it again.

SPEAKER_02 25:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:03

I don't know that I even thought of it. I know I didn't talk to God. I do daily now. I need to, I need to talk to him daily. My yeah, my daily struggles are to me are just a ton.

Personal Struggle, Rebellion, And Return

SPEAKER_00 25:17

Yeah, mine's quite difficult to explain because even in my as I look at it, even in my time of rebellion, I still talk to him every day. And I always tell people, I'm like, you know, it it it's it's a father and son relationship. Even when you're upset, even when you don't understand things, even when God sees you pushing against his will, if you still got that dialogue dialogue open, he's happy. Because you're still talking to him, you still have a relationship. Yeah, it might be might not be the best of times. You know, he you know, you might not be listening as much as that's the thing. I you know, I should have been listening more than I was talking, which was probably a big part of the problem. Like, I because I was questioning everything. I got to a point where like, well, I'm just gonna question everything because don't understand anything. You know, I I felt I came, you know, I felt when when my I felt when my mom got sick, you know, my brother got to have his teenage years, and my sister got to have her teenage years, and I was kind of the one stuck in the middle that stayed home, that tried to be as good as I could be, you know, and it always goes back to, you know, I I've I've carried a lot of grief that I've never expressed because I'm the one that's supposed to be able to handle everything. And that's the way I look at things. So I'm like, well, okay, I got time for that. You know, I have to I have to be, you know, I have to be strong, I have to be, because everybody says that I am. You know, it was almost like, yeah, Nick doesn't do those things because he's he's the strong one. He's the but it got to a point where I withdrew within myself because of that. And and in some ways that helped me through a certain stage of my life, but then at another point in my life when things got, you know, it got to a point where I'm going through a divorce and my mother, mother's passing away at the same time, and everything just kind of came all at once. And it just got to the point where I finally did crack. Like I just finally, finally it was too much. You know, I'd been through so many things and just, you know, dug in my heels and stuck with it and tried to be the hero in every situation that I could, I could be one in, and just tried to be the example and tried to be the one that you know would be there for my parents. And it just got to a certain point where I couldn't do it anymore.

SPEAKER_01 27:58

Well, it's understandable.

SPEAKER_00 27:59

And I did. I just I just cracked under it. Well, it was always funny to me that yes, my whole world could fall down around me, and I was okay, like with my mother getting sick. And yes, it caused my parents to split up for a while, and it caused a separation of relationship between my brother and my sister, and I felt very isolated. I could handle all that. But when it started to attack me personally, when when I went through the the divorce, and then when my mom finally did pass away, it's like, oh, it felt more personal, like it was finally attacking me personally, and that's when that's when I like I said, that's when I cracked, that's when I really started having issues. But to be honest, I mean, it was just because I spent more time questioning than listening. And so, you know, it it it cost me it just cost me a lot of years of just uh I I didn't need to, you know. I started drinking and I never drank before in my life. Didn't like it, hated it. Like I hated the taste of beer. I I had no I never had any desire whatsoever or curiosity about smoking, drinking, drugs, anything. Never entered my mind at all. Like all I wanted to do was, you know, play music and read my books and always just be constructive. So I never had like a destructive behavior problem. And all of a sudden I had one. I didn't know how to deal with that. It was just like I was another person in a lot of ways. So that caught that just cost me a lot of trouble. So that that was me as a teenager going into my 20s, but I really didn't start having problems until I was in my 30s. Like, so I know that it's different for everybody, but I think that's that's another part of this dynamic, is that and maybe another important thing to bring up is like we weren't like really close with Timmy and Emily. We didn't hang out with them beforehand at all. Like we didn't get together for anything. No, we would just, you know, I worked with him for a while. Yeah, we'd see him here or there, say hello.

SPEAKER_01 30:13

It'd probably been eight years since I had a really good relationship with him. And it's not not because that kid by any means. We just had we would just the way it is. It's just the way it was. It would been, yes, probably eight years.

SPEAKER_00 30:25

Yeah. So now to bring them in as family and to be doing this, it just brings in this dynamic of we're all at different points in our lives, but we're all reading from the same Bible, we're all reading from the Word. And so we all have our own perspectives of where we've been, where we're going. And and of course the younger ones not sure where they're going. And so it just it really opens your eyes to how I think a family should work through faith. Is that you should be families should be taking time out of the week to do this. Because you're gonna learn a you're gonna it's very hard to keep an open dialogue with your kids anyway.

SPEAKER_01 31:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:19

And we can talk about Maggie a little bit. You know, Maggie was that child we couldn't get rid of. Yeah. Like everywhere we went, she had to go, she had to be with us all the time, she wouldn't sleep in the same bed. I mean, we just couldn't get rid of her, right?

SPEAKER_01 31:34

Yeah, and you came in the picture when she was six. And I did.

SPEAKER_00 31:37

She just adored me. Like I was just like the golden goose. I was just like, I could do no wrong. I was just like, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:45

And even with our relationship, her relationship with God was even better. She loved Jesus. She tells us about Jesus. That's right. She loved Aunt Florence, she loved coming to church. Like she and she sat, she listened. She was such a good little girl.

SPEAKER_00 32:00

And if you go to where I work now, I have a huge marker board. And she drew a picture of three crosses. This was around Easter. So she drew the three crosses, wrote Jesus on the middle one. And then, but and then, of course, on the side, she drew me, you, and herself, and she wrote love.

SPEAKER_02 32:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 32:17

You know, all these big hearts and all this stuff. So yeah, so she could tell she was at that age, that young age, yeah, she was honed into God and yeah, the love of Jesus.

SPEAKER_01 32:28

Love of Jesus. I have to say, even though I was going through some really hard times in my life, that little girl didn't she didn't feel any of that.

SPEAKER_00 32:37

She just knew love and she knew and she would be talking to us like because we'd be having some difficulty troubles, and she'd be like lecturing us or talking to us, like, don't forget like that. God loves you, or no, it's just stuff like that.

Reconnecting With Extended Family Through Scripture

SPEAKER_01 32:50

And you'd be like, What about that one conversation in the apartment? This was before we were married, and we weren't fighting, but we were just not yeah, we we just were not having a good moment with each other. And she pulled us both in, and I think she like took us by our hands or something, and she said, This isn't what God wants for you, or something like that. Yeah, and we just looked at each other. I mean, she was six or seven years old and said that to us. And I'm just like Yeah, just very perceptive.

SPEAKER_00 33:21

Yes, yeah, and now fast forward she's 14, her glands have swelled up, as they say on Edward Scissor hands, and she went crazy. Yeah, she's she's so now it's we hardly see her. Yeah, and it's like it's like we gotta we still unless we're getting food. Yeah. She wants something. Yeah, that's the only she don't yeah, there's no hanging out no more. Like we are not her we are not her first priority anymore. Not it, not at all. And so now we've got this 14-year-old child that went from being really invested in God to now she's kind of like her priorities have changed.

SPEAKER_01 34:06

Yeah, I mean she's gonna be able to do it. You know, her teen she has her teenage priorities now.

SPEAKER_00 34:09

It's like yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:11

So I mean she does come to church, but it's not very regular. Like, it's by force bad. Like I know I should force her more than what I do, but there's just some some Sundays I'm exhausted. It's like I don't want to do this fight, and I know I should, but I know that that seed is planted in that child that it is, and I'm just yeah, but she'll stay up in her room when Timmy and Emily come over.

SPEAKER_00 34:33

Yeah, like she can't even come down for a drink of water.

SPEAKER_01 34:35

She's very like antisocial too now. Like, and she used to hug waitresses.

SPEAKER_00 34:40

Yeah, we go to eat and she would have to hug the waitresses.

SPEAKER_01 34:44

But she's not she's not a bad girl. She's not a bad girl by anything. She's a very good girl. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:49

She just she just she just has gone into a shell that's like, yeah, she's just Maggie. So at some point we hope that you know we'll we'll get her involved in that too. Yeah. But it goes back to what I'm saying is there's just this complete dynamic of different ages, different experiences. And as a family, you know, we've brought two family members in that weren't necessarily close, and now it's helping us form a bond with them. And that's another great point to make is there is no better way to start forming a bond with family members than Jesus through Jesus and the Word. Yeah, there just isn't because again, there's just so much to discuss. You know, it there's not a dry moment when we're doing this. I mean, and like I said, I was like I said, I was kind of resistant to it. Like I don't have time for another Bible study. Because, you know, like I said, I'm studying for podcasts, we were doing the men's group. Like, I just don't have time for another one.

SPEAKER_01 35:48

Well, yeah, and you're most of the time working nine hour days, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 35:51

So it's like I just want one night where I'm, you know, I you know, but now I can say, like, I look forward to it. Now it's getting to the point where I'm like, I see the I see the value in it. And it's not even so much, I know it's not even so much for me, but I'm always looking forward to see how it will affect Charlie. Yeah, how it will affect Elatris and Seth. And like, you know, I'm always interested to see, okay, I want to see how the wheels are turning this week.

SPEAKER_01 36:16

Yeah, yeah. You know, yeah, and for me too, my family's very broken. My my side of the family is very, very broken. And I'm hoping that with this, maybe more will join and we can mend and heal some things because God's gonna be the only thing that's gonna fix this. You know, I I've tried my my best to to heal my family, it's just not working. So, I mean, even if we just get one more couple in, that's one more couple. And and it's not like the I I hope they never feel like they're choosing me to come and do this because that's not what I want it to be. I want it to be about Jesus, and I know Jesus can soften hearts, so I'm hoping this will spread, spread to everybody. But I don't know. We'll we shall see. But if it's just Timmy and Emily and the kids and the rest of us for all time, I'm still okay with that because this is wonderful. I really enjoy doing it.

SPEAKER_03 37:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:17

And as you said, for somebody like you, and we talked about this in the last episode, you were a go, go, go, go, go, go all the time. Like all the time. Even it could be 10 o'clock at night. I'm like, yeah, let's watch this movie. You're still like, uh, let me throw some laundry in.

SPEAKER_01 37:31

That's why you take me to the movies. That's the only way I would.

SPEAKER_00 37:33

The only way I can get her to sit down, folks. If I actually yeah, and she dumped a whole pop on her last time. Hold what? What what four? I don't know. How big was it? Like a 44 ounce. 44 ounce pop.

SPEAKER_01 37:43

At the beginning of the movie.

SPEAKER_00 37:44

Yeah, 20 minutes in. That's all right. It'll be all right. Yeah. But that is the only way I can get her to sit still. Even that's still like up in the air. Yeah, yeah, true. So for somebody like you, and I think the point needs to be made, like, there's nothing wrong with that because as I said in the last episode, if you've got a good woman, that means you know, you're you're busy, you're doing things, you're taking care of the family, you're doing all the things that you feel you know you're expected and led to do. But even somebody like you needs to needs to know and to have a time to stop. And this for you has has been an answer to that. Because now you're committed. Yeah. You know, you you've decided to commit not only yourself, but family and set aside a time. And yeah, and we're and we're eating right before we do it. So it doesn't matter who prepares the meal, who brings it. But we've just decided as a family, like, yep, we are going to set aside this time. And for people, and I would say for a lot of successful people, if you're successful, that means you're busy all the time. That means you're always doing things. So it's very hard to hit the brakes and slow down. So something like this, it's just it's it's forced us to do it, and it's gave given us this, you know, avenue to just be in that lane. Just you know, be in that lane and just really make it a priority.

SPEAKER_01 39:16

Yeah.

Making Space To Stop And Listen

SPEAKER_00 39:17

And for somebody like you, that's key. Because me, again, for me, it's easy. Like, I could wrap up with a book in a second. It it don't it don't matter how busy I've been all day. I could come home right from work, kick my shoes off, go upstairs, sit in my chair, start reading. Like I could switch it off like that. Like it that I would love, I would love to be able to do that more. But for me, it's easy. But for somebody, as soon as you get home, you've already worked eight, nine hours. But the first thing you're thinking about is I gotta throw laundry in, I gotta do dishes, I gotta figure out what's for supper, gotta see if my kids need anything, see if the cats need anything. Well round and round we go.

SPEAKER_01 39:55

You do take care of the cats.

SPEAKER_00 39:56

I do, but a lot of times I'm thinking, if only I didn't have to take care of these cats, I could go upstairs and read. That's the way my brain works. Your your brain is more you don't think that way. You think, no, my first priority is I I need to do all these things. And and you will. Well, sometimes not rarely. Rarely do you folder from that. No. And and it's it's quite amazing, but so th for you, this this I think was absolutely necessary. Because you I agree.

SPEAKER_01 40:29

I agree.

SPEAKER_00 40:30

Because you've won in because you you tried the verse a day.

SPEAKER_01 40:33

Yeah, and I tried the to listen and I tried.

SPEAKER_00 40:37

In audio.

SPEAKER_01 40:38

Yeah, and I didn't.

SPEAKER_00 40:39

So for a long time you've been trying to find your way. Right.

SPEAKER_01 40:42

And the Bible that I got is the best Bible. I wish I'd brought it with me. I and uh which one is I picked that out. Yeah, because it's so so easy to read. Mine is because you guys hear me read it, and yeah, I love the Bible that I have. So it's definitely easier for me to understand it too. But yeah, I'm definitely, I don't I don't sit still very long, drives me crazy to do it. And I don't know why.

unknown 41:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 41:07

Well, I don't know why I'm wired this way.

SPEAKER_00 41:10

It's not necessarily a bad thing, but when it comes to when it comes to this though, I mean this has truly been an answer for you. Yeah. To at least get that hour every week, if that's all you get, yes, besides church.

SPEAKER_02 41:21

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 41:22

To where, as you said, you can sit down, get through some scripture, ask some questions, get some fresh perspective on it, learn a few things, and and then expound upon that. That's that's one reason why I think it's what we're doing is something that more people should get into. Yeah. Because it's one of those things, it's like anything else. It's hard to get it started. You know, you got to coordinate, you gotta find the people to do it with, you gotta make the time. But once you start doing it, it's like, man, I don't want to miss this. Like you you don't want to skip it. And that's that's the point every family has to get to, is to decide, look, we're not gonna be, we're not gonna be backward about this anymore. You know, yeah, my kids don't get it. But if we could just get them, if we can just get them in the room and just have a conversation, not just sit there and read dry scripture and preach to them, but really allow them the chance to talk, to ask questions. It just makes all the difference in the world.

SPEAKER_01 42:20

Well, and also too, people need to understand we're not perfect. We're not perfect, we all struggle every day. I'm just not gonna either this group of people. So if you have a group, your family, you have a group, but you all love Jesus, but you have somebody that's drinking every day, or you have somebody that smokes, that's okay. That's okay. Come together and read the Bible because at the end of the day, you still need to form that relationship, even if you're still doing things that you're not putting God first. That's okay. You got to start somewhere. Sit down with your family and go over just math, your a page of math, because I think that's about all we're gonna do.

SPEAKER_00 42:55

That's about all we do. Yeah, we get through a couple, you know, a couple chapters at a time. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 43:00

Yeah, because yeah, I don't ever want anybody to think, especially when you do podcasts, and I don't think you guys ever come off that way, that we we think we're perfect because none of us do. No, I think we've you've guys established that. Even Pastor Michael, he he he he lets everybody know that he fails daily. We all do. There's there's just things we're human. We're here, we're not Jesus. Jesus was the perfect one, the only one. That's it, that's it. And the rest of us will fail. But as long as you keep seeking Jesus, you're gonna get into heaven. You just need to keep that relationship. And one thing, every day I know that I talk to Jesus if it's not thanking him or asking him to help me not to do this, do that, or just help me go the right way. I definitely do. And I'm I think I said it before, I'm gonna be 48 years old, and I don't, I try to think back, but I don't think I've ever blamed God for anything that's bad's happened in my life. Because I know so many people get so down and things go so wrong, and they're like they get mad at God, they turn their head, they turn away from. And I don't, I don't feel like I've ever necessarily done that. When I get real bad, it's my fault. But I'm one of those people that it's always my fault.

SPEAKER_00 44:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 44:18

I I'm very, very rough on myself.

SPEAKER_00 44:21

Yeah, I I tell him that all the time. Like I said, even when I went through my rebellious period, as I call it, my last weekend, so to speak. Uh-huh. It was like uh I knew it was my fault. Like I never was like, God, this is all your fault. Why would you do this to me? And then just I just, you know, I it was more of just I went into this, just I wanted to do it myself. Like I just thought, you know, just I just wasn't I just didn't focus anymore on what God would want me to do and how he would want me to handle the situation. But no, I still talk to him every day. And yes, I had questions. I had plenty of questions, and and I just look at it sometimes as a son would ask his father, you know, like a frustrated son that just doesn't quite understand and needs to grow up a little bit more, and maybe it just has I I reached a point of frustration in my life, but I was uh never I mean, since you know, you sometimes you would think, God, why are you keeping me around? Like, what is really the point? You know, what is the point if if this is all I'm gonna do?

SPEAKER_02 45:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 45:28

But you do realize you're like, you know what, yeah, it's all my fault. Like, I could have handled that better. I could have taken that situation and I could have used it to my full advantage, and he could have led me places I couldn't even ever imagine going if I just continued to let him do the driving. That's right, you know.

Small Seeds Versus Big Miracles

SPEAKER_01 45:48

So yeah, I I never had no and I'm not saying that people that have had that conversation with God uh that have turned away because something horrific's happened in their life. They're not bad people. You just if you get if something just that bad happens, I I I would get it, especially losing a child. I I can understand why a mom would have that conversation with him because that would be a hard one. And and I I guess maybe I've been blessed then because I've never had to have that conversation. So I guess thank you, Jesus, for that. But everything I've been through in my life, I I have to thank God that I'm still here.

SPEAKER_00 46:27

Have you seen Erica Kirk lately?

SPEAKER_01 46:30

No, I haven't followed too much on.

SPEAKER_00 46:32

And I haven't really eaten. But a little bit I've watched her speak. You can tell there's a fire within her. But but the expression on her face is you can tell that she's still going through so much anguish over it. Yeah. Now she's committed to doing what the Lord wants her to do. I don't I wouldn't question that for a moment. Like she is still doing I think what Charlie would want her to do and what she thinks the Lord wants her to do. But you can tell there's an anguish about her still over that. So don't think that even you know, something like that, she lost her husband in that in in in that circumstance, and she's still expected to lead people to the Lord and and be an example herself. And you could tell it's where I think it's wearing on her to a certain extent.

SPEAKER_01 47:34

She's also a mother that's also a mother, yeah. You know, keep her kids explain things to her, and they're just babies.

SPEAKER_00 47:40

Yeah. But you can just tell. I mean, the the expression on her face is just one of it's it's a combination of just anguish but determination. Yeah, you you can definitely tell how much that has affected her.

SPEAKER_02 47:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 48:00

And as you said, I mean, it would affect anybody too. You know, even even if you you still wanna you still want to be faithful to the Lord, you still want to do what the Lord wants to do, but it's still it's a hard thing to carry.

SPEAKER_01 48:14

Yeah, oh I bet.

SPEAKER_00 48:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 48:19

Yeah. So many people go through so many different things, and that's why it's so hard for us to say, well, you need to do this or you need to do that. We've not been there. We don't know that hurt. And like even addiction, you went to a point where you were drinking, but you was never addicted. I wouldn't think you were. No, you aren't an addict by any means.

SPEAKER_00 48:39

I do not believe so.

SPEAKER_01 48:40

So people that are addicts, it's so hard for me to because I I have a guy that I work with right now, and he's probably going to go back to jail because he's gotten himself into trouble. And you he's only 30 years old, and he you can just he's just broken. And I said to him, I said, I know that I've never been through what you've been through. I said, but I've been through some stuff. Trust me, I have. And I said, and if you're still here, God wants you here. Because he was getting to a point where he's just like, I'm the biggest loser. I'm 30 years old. I don't have kids. I'm not married. Like, what good am I? I'm like, you're still here for a reason. You need to keep going, get through this, work on yourself. And I told him, I said, I know it sounds corny and a lot of people would not want to listen to me. I said, but you you need to find Jesus. I said, you don't have to go to church, just read the Bible or just get into something, but kind of follow Jesus. I said, because that's gonna help you. Trust me, that's gonna help you. And again, I I don't I don't know what that is because Yeah, people think you're being condescending.

SPEAKER_00 49:41

Yeah, and when you say you need to find Jesus.

SPEAKER_01 49:43

Yeah, yeah. And so that's why I try to go out about it that way with him. I'm just like, I don't want this to sound stupid, but Jesus will help you through this. He definitely will. I said so many different ways because everybody talks about their anxiety and how this and that. And I'm like, you need to find Jesus. Like even Maggie. I'm like, you her and her anxiety. I'm like, you'll be all right. You gotta deal with that.

SPEAKER_00 50:06

Yeah, these kids just anxiety. I Dale and I talked about this, and I was just like, you know, anxiety is just thrown around way too much. Like you're special because you have it. You're like, you're not special, everybody has it. Like I was full of anxiety in my younger years over a lot of different things, but you know, now you know, I was lucky that for some reason I walked into Walden Books in the Mall and bought a Bible. That doesn't happen every day with kids, but but yeah, it's you know, and one thing I I told Charlie is that, okay, so you're asking, you're trying to look at all these really flashy things. You know, Jesus brings Lazarus back to life, he heals the blind, heals the deaf, you know, makes the lame walk. He's doing all these grand miracles. You're thinking, how is it possible? And you need to see that for you to believe. And I'm thinking, you're missing the point. It's not about the acts that Jesus is doing in in this book. It's that if you but if you take on the faith and believe who he says he is and take it into your heart, the miracle is gonna be that you are gonna see changes in yourself, things that you have wrong with you, or the anxieties that you have, Jesus is gonna change it and you're gonna feel it, you're gonna experience it. That's that's the true miracle of it, is what people will start to see you differently. They'll ask you, What's different about you? You know, that they can start to see Jesus in you, and that's the true miracle of it. You don't need to question about all these grand miracles he performs in the Bible. That's that's not really the point. Which a lot of times I think that's why Jesus is like, okay, I've healed you, but don't go tell anybody. You know, because it's not the point that I did it. The point is that you believe that I did it, and you have the faith that I did it, and you need to carry that with you. Not that you need to go tell everybody I did it, so it becomes a spectacle.

Testimony, Anxiety, And Everyday Faith

SPEAKER_01 52:09

Yeah. Well, there's still so many miracles in this world today, but so many people are just like they dismiss it as a miracle. Yeah. Like I've had so many in my lifetime, and my the one that always sticks out the most to me is Charlie and Seth. I was carrying those babies in my belly, and they said that Seth had this chloroplex assist on his head, and it was this, they acted like it was this big deal. Not only did he have that, he had dilated kidneys. And being twins, there is always that option to terminate the one.

SPEAKER_00 52:38

So then, you know, you know, can survive.

SPEAKER_01 52:40

Yeah, because they were fraternal, so that's something. Yeah, not an option. So they told me those those things about Seth, and they said when he's born, we're gonna probably have to get him out. He's gonna have to have a pea bag put on the side or whatever those are called. Clostrol bang. Yeah, so he'd have to have that, and they had low fluid, and there was just like all the this medical stuff. And I'm like, okay, okay, you know, as um mom carrying these babies, I was upset, stressed, and just everything. And I didn't even have the relationship I have with God that I have now, but I feel like I had a pretty good one. When those babies were born, they were perfect. Seth came out, and the first thing he did was pee on a doctor. This is the truth. He didn't need there was nothing wrong with his kidneys when he was born. That cis went away before he was even out of the womb. Like every he was perfect. So, I mean, just that. I mean, some people would say that's a miracle. That's a miracle because there are so many women that may have chosen to terminate that pregnancy. You gotta give God, you gotta give him a chance with these babies, and so many people won't. And my son's he's a nurse. I mean, he's a he's a great kid, he's the one tight with money, but I mean, he had all these things that could have been wrong with him, and he's he's perfect. Well, he'll tell you he's not, he's got some issues, but he does, but yeah, but but that yeah, I mean, that was just one one thing. And I've had so my testimonies could go on and on. Oh, yeah. They really could, even small ones to huge ones. God's been there for me so many, so many times, and I fail just daily, and I know like I I need to always do better, I need to be a better person, I need to do the things. That's the thing. You feel better when you have Jesus in your life because you know that you're doing the right things, but the minute you do something wrong, buddy, you feel that that that's worse than conviction, yeah. Yeah, I mean, that's worse than somebody calling you out or something beating you up because you can feel that conviction, like you feel it, and a lot of times you try to dismiss it, like yeah, it'll be all right. Yeah, and then it'll come back, yeah, it'll eventually stop you, dead in your tracks. So, so yeah, even though you feel good, if you start doing things that God does not want you to do, He's you're gonna feel that too. Yeah, that's a whole different feeling.

SPEAKER_00 54:58

Yeah, and yeah, and people want the big miracle, they want the big spectacle, like they need something so unbelievable to happen to start believing, and they're just totally missing missing the point.

SPEAKER_02 55:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 55:12

That you know, it's it's not you're not gonna turn around and see this big red wood and and have all the answers. No, it starts with this small seed, you know, and you gotta watch it grow. And it's just that that's you know, that's the miracle of life. As you say with children, you know, that's the miracle of life is seeing things grow. And but people oftentimes don't want to do that, they just want to they want the end result, or it's not possible. It's not yeah, it's not worth their time.

SPEAKER_01 55:46

You know, uh daily all all I think about is I want to get into heaven. Like that's my goal. That's my goal. But my biggest thing I feel like lately is I want to help somebody else get into heaven. I want them to see God, even if, even if I can't move them that whole way, like I want to like plant the seed. Yeah, like I want to do that. And especially for my children, which most mothers would say that, but but just anybody, like the guy I was talking about at work, Jesse. I I so hope that he takes control of his life and he gets where he needs to be because he's such a kind person. And I think that Jesus is trying to get into him because of who he is, he's a kind person. And then Matt, that I take care of daily, 68 years old, and I don't know that he doesn't know Jesus real well, but we talk about Jesus and we're gonna be watching Passion. We're gonna be watching Passion of the Christ because we talk about him.

SPEAKER_00 56:40

Yeah, and it's just that's one of those things, is it meant to be that you're the one taking care of him?

SPEAKER_01 56:46

Yeah, but I still I'm just like, oh, am I doing enough? Because I I like to talk to him about it, and he talks to me about it, but yeah, but I would real, really love for Matt just to get Jesus in his heart because we don't know how long Matt's gonna be here. And yeah, such a great guy, and and I don't I didn't know him before this, and I've only been taking care of him for a few months, and maybe he's always had Jesus in his heart, but he doesn't he's not able to talk that well to me about that kind of stuff. So every once in a while we just we'll just talk about it.

SPEAKER_00 57:18

So I always say I want to do the work in spite of myself. So while I'm working on me, I still want to help other people do the work as well. Yeah. So you know, I uh I'm never like, well, I'm you know, I'm the last person in the world should be preaching the word because I'm not perfect. Well, no. Yeah. You you know, if you if you have Jesus in your heart, you have the knowledge, you have the We can still lead somebody even though we have the intention of leading and and doing it honestly and with the right intent, then you should be doing it. I mean you can do it. You know, again, you don't have to wait till everything is perfectly in alignment to start preaching the word. Or continuing on with that, or just again, or to start believing, you know. But I think families have to, again, families have to make it a priority. And even even if you're going to church together, I can't say that's enough. You know, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 58:15

Well, it just depends on how you're going to church together.

SPEAKER_00 58:18

There's just a dynamic to doing it in your home. Mm-hmm that's very different than even this right here or going to church, it's just a it's a different dynamic.

SPEAKER_01 58:26

Yeah. I was gonna say you could go to church together, but don't don't stop it there as soon as you get home. Even though you don't have to do a Bible study, but still at least mention him.

Worship, The Word, And Growth At Church

SPEAKER_03 58:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 58:36

Hey, you know, uh Pastor Michael said this at church, because you and I do that. We'll talk about what he's preached about and you know how we've both taken it.

SPEAKER_00 58:44

And well, that was the thing. His message last week, I mean, he brought Abraham, he was talking about Abraham, and I thought, okay, now how did he do that? He didn't know I was gonna talk about him as well on the next episode of the podcast. So sometimes once you're into this whole thing, it's like everything just clicks. Yeah. Like you just like one thing just goes right, it starts to go in order, and you start going like that now. That's a miracle. You know, like, okay, he has no idea what I'm what I'm gonna talk about. And and he even said, like, okay, this isn't my message, what can be my message? Then he starts talking about it. I think, okay, now if you were there on Sunday and then you listen to this podcast, it all kind of rolls together. And that's sometimes like, wow, yeah, I know we're doing something right.

SPEAKER_01 59:32

Yeah, and again, us as a couple, you definitely absorb everything Pastor Michael says. Yeah, you absorb it. So when we leave, you talk to me about it. And it's you do a great job, Pastor Michael. I really love listening to you, but I don't absorb it like Nick does. So Nick will start talking about, so then we talk about it. I'm more of the the worship, the the I love the singing, and I love to listen to Pastor Michael as well.

SPEAKER_00 59:57

But I that's that's such another dynamic between you and I because you love the worship. Like you'll sing through the whole thing. Yeah. You're moving.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:05

And you're ready for to listen to Pastor Michael. You're just thinking.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:08

I'm like, okay, I just want to get to Michael's word. I just want to get to the message because that's how I that's yeah, where I where I get my yeah, what I need.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:15

Which is great because then it just is. Yeah, then you get to talk to me. But then I've I play worship at home, so yeah. Yeah, we're definitely different when it comes to those things too. And that's what makes us a good couple, I think.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:27

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:28

Sometimes you you're listening to your music, I'm like, we just heard this at church, or listening to it again. Yeah. But then I'll be upstairs reading the Bible. Like I'll be ready to get I'll hear Michael say something, and sometimes it's in alignment with what I wanted to talk about, or it'll just spark something to be like, oh, that might be a good topic. So then I want to dive into it further. So yeah, it is it is a different dynamic, but it all it all works.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:57

So yeah, family's where it's at. I mean, you have to you have to have some sort of you know almost said ritual. That's not right at all. Um yeah, you you just have to get together and and make make the effort to really have have conversations and yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:21

Um yeah, make it a tradition.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:24

You know, it'd be I mean, because I think that'd be great to ten years from now to to look back on and say, you know what, we've been doing this for ten years. Wouldn't that be great? That'd be all the great times we've had doing this and everything that we've learned and everything we've shared, and yeah, that'd be something really great to look back on and be proud that you did it.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:42

Even if we hit five years, won't that be a blessing that we've made up five years of just the Bible study? And there's so many people that can do this with friends. Nick and I don't have friends. We really don't. We don't we don't have a group of people. We just for the most part it's you and I. Well, I mean we have our work friends, people at work and stuff like that, but we don't have friends.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:03

We uh well we are pre we're still the pre-cell phone generation. We did not grow up with social media. We grew up having to entertain ourselves and be creative and find things to do, and one of the downsides of that is our generation, well, how does our generation like to have fun? I mean our schoolmates still still like to go out on Saturday night and have drinks and maybe still go to the bars or do this, do that, and we just don't that doesn't interest us.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:44

No.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:45

You know, just doesn't. No. I mean, so I think we're very social, but we're not social. Yeah. We you know, we we could talk to anybody for hours, I think. But we're not social, we're not gonna go hit the town and no, you know, get juiced up and we're just not. We're just not gonna dinner.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:05

Yeah. And maybe a movie.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:07

Yeah, maybe maybe, maybe. So yeah, but I I don't know. And we're just so busy. That's the other thing.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:14

We're just yeah, we're very busy. We don't have time for friends.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:17

Oh that's terrible to say it like that's I mean being being married to you has been the busiest part of my entire life. I don't mind saying it. I mean, it's been the busiest seven years of my life, but I know it's been the most productive. Not always the most fun, but it has been the most productive. You know, but but again, though, we're you know, you and I were looking forward, we're hoping to get our dining room and living room remodeled this year. And if you just look at the growth, everything that we've done, you think, wow, yeah, it's been hard. You know, not getting much sleep at night. If I get six and a half hours of sleep, I'm lucky. Yeah. But when you look at the result, you're like, well, you can't really argue with the result.

Tradition, Commitment, And Keeping It Fresh

SPEAKER_01 1:04:02

No, no, because that's the thing, you can't not to keep talking, but even our remodel, that's a thank you, Jesus, because we went into that and thinking this much higher number. And I'm just like, if we can come in so much cheaper, I'm gonna be so happy. And it's fifteen thousand dollars less than what we thought, and it's probably gonna be even almost twenty thousand less. And I I I came in after talking to the guy, and Nick looked at me, and I I think my neck hurts. So I just the look on my face, he's like, Oh, is it bad news? I'm like, no, it's actually great news. Now we just got to get the financing, but it yeah, I'm I'm so excited for this because yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:41

Step one was was well, you know, yeah above our expectations.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:46

And that's I and I don't even as far as Jesus, I don't even like to ask him for that. Like, hey, have but I'm just like, oh, if this too could I don't pray for it right because I don't want to ask for anything that's material monetary, yeah. I don't want to ask for that because if it doesn't happen, so be it. We'll survive. It's not a big deal. It's I want to go to Jesus for like if there's any health issues, things that we need help with, but money fixing the house up, we're good. We're good. Yeah, because but but now that it came in under, I know that was him. I didn't ask for it, but I know he gave it. So, you know, we said thank you, Jesus. And that's what I told Nick as soon as I heard the the amount. I'm like, thank you, Jesus. Well, I didn't ask for it, but thank you, Jesus, which is the truth, which that's the honest to goodness truth. So yeah, we've been blessed.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:43

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:44

We definitely have.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:46

I only had one verse that kind of summed up this episode. It was Proverbs 22, 6, which says, train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not turn away from it. So that's what we're trying to do is get them wheels turning, just you know, get the get the dirt between the toes and get in there and just start, you know, walking around and getting a feel for the soil and for what got God is trying to lay down for 'em. And you know, just and just having, you know, just like I said, just making that effort. Like I said, I think it's I think you'll find if if you just if every family just takes that time and just kind of everybody puts their guard down, everybody just you know, really just is honest with themselves and and and don't be afraid to be don't be afraid to be judged or laughed at or you know, questioned. You end up getting a lot from it. And I know we are, so yeah, I could see us keep going with this for quite some time.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:06

Me too. I'm even making plans for the summer. We can do it out on the back deck. It's just all these things.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:11

Yeah, and that's maybe another great point is like mix it up a little bit. Don't you know, because right now we're at the bar in the kitchen. Yeah. Yeah. And then maybe if that starts to get a little old, you know, yeah, move the move the environment a little bit. And yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:24

Weather just needs to break in Ohio.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:26

And then But yeah, that's another great point. Yeah. It's just yeah, find ways to keep it interesting, to keep everybody involved.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:32

And yeah, that's pretty good. I thought there was one more thing I wanted to mention, but I think it's left me. So we're getting to be, yeah, we're just about at that time. So is there anything else?

SPEAKER_01 1:07:46

Uh I don't think so.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:49

Yeah. So I always think so sometimes this is a great point. Sometimes going into these episodes, I'm like, as we've talked about many times, how are we gonna fill 45 minutes to an hour talking about this?

SPEAKER_02 1:08:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:02

And now we're like we're going into an hour and 10 minutes. So blessed be the Lord that if you're talking about Him and you got a true purpose, it takes care of itself. It's like the word takes care of itself every time. It's amazing how it works.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:18

Yeah. No matter what your struggles, just look for Jesus because that's the only way you're gonna get through these things in this this world because it's only getting tougher. Yeah, and this world is not this world is not great. We have great things that happen, wonderful things that happen to us while we're here, but heaven's gonna be so much better. Yeah, so so much better.

unknown 1:08:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:43

Yeah. The AI world and social media.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:51

Yeah. We've seen some cool things in our life so far, especially since we've been here. I suppose. I think we've got to be able to do that. But heaven is not gonna be any comparison. But we've seen some neat things, but I suppose we have. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:02

But how useful really is.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:05

Yeah, but God made them all, so that's why we're supposed to go see them, you know, like the badlands and everything.

Closing Reflections And Prayer

SPEAKER_00 1:09:09

Oh, yeah, but to me, that's still God's wonders.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:12

Yeah, right, yeah, yeah. But heaven definitely. But heaven. That's all I but heaven's gonna be just peace and calm. And that's that's my heaven. That's what we want. Peace and calm.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:24

Yeah, and a good book.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:28

I just want everybody up there too, you know, including my animals.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:32

Yeah, oh yeah. If I get to heaven, I have to do kitty litter. You wouldn't have I am not gonna be happy.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:40

You wouldn't have to do kitty litter, but they'd be laying all over you, and you know that's that would be heaven. Uh, when I lose an animal, it's it's it's a situation.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:47

It's it's a scream of we got a lot of heartbreak coming our way.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:50

Yeah, we do. And and my biggest thing is I've been told over the years that animals don't have souls. So when my animals die, I just lose it. Because humans, when they pass, I'm not so sure about that though.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:01

I mean, when they when they look at me and yeah, and talk to you, talk to me, I'm like, there's something there. Yeah, because that I think it's I don't think like a pig does that or a cow or some of them. But a dog and a cat, yeah, they just I don't know, there's something there. It's gotta be.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:16

I mean, even all dogs go to heaven. Yeah, yeah. Something behind that.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:20

So you well, that's why that's so hard for me, though. And human death is not because I know that there's a heaven. I know that God's gonna take care of, but then people had to tell me that, so I lose it. I lose it back.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:31

Well, you know, maybe cats will be your crowns. That's fine. Everybody gathers up their crowns. Maybe instead of crowns, like, yeah, we'll just give her cats.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:38

Yeah. Well, I want my cat.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:39

She never liked jewelry anyway.

SPEAKER_01 1:10:41

So I don't care about that stuff. I just want my tippy back. I just want my certain animals back. Well, all the animals I've loved, which is lots.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:52

Don't I know it?

SPEAKER_01 1:10:53

Yeah. You do too. You love those cats as much as they just gotta be if we could potty train them.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:01

If we could, yes. If we could just be like Robert De Niro and train him to go on the toilet like Jinxie.

SPEAKER_01 1:11:05

Like Jinxie, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:06

Yeah, we'd have it made. Yeah. Yeah.

unknown 1:11:09

No.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:09

Yeah, we'll keep working on it. All right, I'm gonna pray us out here. Lord, thank you once again for allowing us to come here tonight and to be in your word and to express um how much we feel that every family needs to be a part of your family. Um, help us strive every single day to continue uh to make you a priority in our lives, to see that everything that good comes our way comes from you, and that if we continue to be faithful, if we continue to rely on your good judgment and trust in what you're doing in our lives, and sharing that with our family and and our younger generation, um, that everything that good you have coming to us will certainly um be brought to the table. Um, I pray all these things in your precious name. We love you. Amen.