The Road Traveled
A Christian based podcast geared to men to be able to take the bible and make it applicable to each man's life on the road he travels.
The Road Traveled
Ep 14: No Perfect People Needed, Thankfully
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We explore how God’s grace meets us in weakness and why availability matters more than polish. Charlotte Elliott’s “Just As I Am” anchors a call to start small, pray simply, and let daily obedience become a living testimony.
• grace made perfect in weakness from Isaiah
• Charlotte Elliott’s story and the impact of Just As I Am
• come as you are and begin where you stand
• growth as steady practice of prayer and Scripture
• simple prayer for spouses and families
• biblical examples of imperfect people used by God
• heart over appearance and authentic respect
• small steps, daily obedience, and testimony in change
If you enjoy the episode, share it, subscribe either on the Road Travel podcast or on the Road Traveled YouTube
Welcome And Purpose Of The Show
SPEAKER_00Welcome to The Road Travel, a Christian podcast for men, where real faith meets real life. Through honest conversations and personal stories, we help you apply God's word to your everyday journey by sharing the road we've traveled. Whether you're walking through challenge, change, or calling, this is your road. And you don't have to travel it alone. Now, let's take the next step with your hosts, Aaron Degler and Alan Hugator.
Scripture On Grace And Weakness
SPEAKER_02Welcome back to the Road Travel. Thank you for taking a little time to join us today. We hope that as we meet you, we find you on your road where you're at. As you join us, we will share a little bit about our road that we've traveled, and we'll share a little scripture, share some stories, share some application. How do we apply that to your road? How did we apply it to our road? And hopefully, from seeing that, maybe you can take an example, take it on your road with you, that it might find you might find some use from it while you're on your road. So uh thank you for joining us again today. I'm your host, Aaron Degler, along with uh your host Alan Hugator, as you travel the road with us. So we'll get started now and let you kick it off.
Charlotte Elliott’s Story And Hymn
Do Not Hold Back: Begin Where You Are
SPEAKER_01Let me start with some scripture here. We'll be reading out of Isaiah 40 and 30. This is where God is talking to Paul. And it starts here and it says, My grace is significant for you. For my power is made perfect in weakness. Give you a little thought on that is if for a lack of terms, if you're full of yourself and you're all gone and you're just going, I don't need no help. God he can't reach you because you're not allowing him to reach you. But in a little weaker time when you're needing some help, when do we go to God anyway? When times ain't good. So we go to him, we're in weakness. Well, then he's able to come in and m change and move our lives and our thoughts and our, you know, because we can allow him. We need him. But when you're too prideful or you're too full of yourself, I don't need him. I'm doing this on my own. I got it myself. And but that's when he's saying that, you know, his grace is significant for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. I run across a story about a person's weakness. We all have weaknesses of different kinds. But this lady, she lived in England, her name is Charlotte Elliot. She lived back in the early 1800s. I'm going to be summarizing this story to keep it from being so long. And so I'm just going to kind of touch on general areas. But she was about 30 years old. Her dad was a minister. No, it's here, excuse me. Her grandfather's minister. Her dad was, you know, a good businessman. Her sister-in-law worked in the mission. Her and another brother, member of her family, worked in missions. They were all very active in working for the Lord and doing things for the Lord. Very, very, very involved. But about 30 years old, she contracted a disease that kind of bedfested her. She could get out for short periods but drop back in there. And so with all of this going on in her family, the whole family is very dedicated to the Lord. And she was, and it really worked on her because she couldn't get out and go help at the mission. She couldn't go and help with the missionary work. She couldn't do anything because of confinement. I mean, she didn't have this cell phone to put out podcasts or put out text messages or try to reach people or call them or nothing. She is hung in her home. And if you've ever been sick, laying around the house for three or four days, oh, it don't take long to get cabin fever. We're wanting out of there, we're wanting to be healed, we're wanting to be well, and we're wanting to get out, and we're wanting to do things, hopefully, you know, for the Lord's work. Well, she was just unable to do it physically. And so that really worked on her mentally. I believe this is about 1835. She wrote, I think it started out as a poem, but she was actually talking to God. And you will know it's become one of the most famous hymns in a lot of churches today or in a lot of the congregations about just as I am. And if anyone's listening and they don't know, you can put that in there and it will pull up this hymn. And you can see how she is talking to God. She's pleading with God to accept her how she is, even though she's not out working for him. But accept me because these conditions are holding me back. But please, God, accept me just as I am. And this became so famous. Billy Graham used it to close nearly all of his sermons throughout the world. He would play just as I am. And I mean, that's how popular. She wrote other hymns also. And because that's usually one that's played at end of services, too. Call to altar. Yes. Yeah, it's I mean, that's the way it was when churches I've been in. It's a call to altar. And I mean, he'd done it a lot, you know. Well, his was a sermon, no difference. He's in the church building here, or if he's in a stadium, it still was church. And he had to call to altar. And but he played that. But she'd done it during this period in time, never knowing that one of the greatest evangelists of our lifetime would use this around the world. And she wrote over a hundred hymns of different songs that she'd put together. But the service that she put out in her condition, you never know until you start putting out what effect it can have on society or have effect for the Lord or for the work of the Lord. And so part of this is do not ever hold back. Go and do what you can. You never know what it will build into. The other is understand that no matter how good you've been, or if you're physically unable, or if you've been one of the most sinful people on earth, or whatever, God will accept you. She pleaded to him in a way of a hymn or a poem or a prayer. I'm sure she had prayed this same thing there was time. And don't hold back because right there, first thing to do, my thoughts, is to go into prayer and ask him to accept you, no matter what you've been through, what you've done, whatever your history is, because his grace is ready. Now that don't mean that he's going to accept you with on and total give you total forgiveness that day without you going on and start converting over and changing your life. This is just the beginning. So just by going and saying that prayer is just the beginning of He accepts you coming in any form fashion, but that's just the beginning, and then you have to pray, and then you've got to talk to him through the prayer, and you have to listen, and that's through studying his word. You're listening to him by reading and studying the Bible. I just saw it was a great example that was set by a lady that had no idea she was setting one of, you know, put out the effort, write, do different things, whatever it takes. And and she was really just doing what she could. She was pleading to him, please. And she wrote it down and look where it went.
SPEAKER_02And and and in her pain, in her all the things she had was what she put out there to and and it's really what a lot of us feel. You know, that we we we don't have anything. How do we you can't accept me because look at what I am, look at what I was, look at who I am. And we and you're right, and and when what when we get there and we accept Lord God into our life, then there's still a lot of work that has to be done. I think sometimes when we when we get saved, we think, oh, it's gonna be a complete change. And we I think sometimes we expect this, you know, almost like an Instagram filter. You know, everything now is gonna be filtered through this godly lens. But but it takes it takes work, just like in anything, it takes work of reading his word, praying with him, communicating with him, listening, being still, being quiet. It takes work and it takes practice.
Growth As A Daily Journey
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's a true journey. And even if you just improve a little every day, or you feel like you took a step back, then come on forward. It's no different than when you're doing your your training on fitness, you know. It sometimes you have to take a step back to keep going forward, or or you feel like you're really not getting anywhere, but you are as long as you stay and study, you are getting somewhere. But it is a journey. I mean, that's kind of like on our title here, you know. This is our travels, this is our road, and it's all part of the growth. The apostles never quit growing and learning more about our Lord. They learnt more all the way to the end of their lives. So you never quit studying, you never quit learning, you never quit building that relationship with him. And you have to go talk to him because that's how you build a relationship. Then you can go in the same room. If we don't talk to each other, how do we build a relationship? We don't ever learn about each other. No, exactly.
SPEAKER_02And I I think well might might have been Moses. I don't really remember. I just listened to this last week and I can't remember. But anyhow, I feel like it was Moses, but he he he said Hanini, which means Hebrew for, here I am. It's Hanini. And that has stuck with me the last couple weeks is sometimes it's it's you know all the different things we have going on in life, it's sometimes here I am, Lord. I don't necessarily know the right word to say. I don't what know what the right thing to do is. I don't know what I'm supposed to do, but here I am. Um it's almost like come as you are. You know, here I am, do with me what you want. I mean, I just I just think Kanini is a great way to say, here I am. I may be like her, these are my miseries, Lord. These are these are the things that are going on, but here I am coming to you, pleading with you, asking you, and sharing with you.
Here I Am: Hineni And Obedience
SPEAKER_01I go back to our relationship and what we're doing today on these podcasts. We talked about it a year before we ever let it develop and happen. We found excuses not to get started. And then we started with the very first one for whoever's listening. If you hadn't heard the first one, the very first one, we didn't have it named, we didn't know, we just said we got to get started. And I'm sure we'll never have the kind of results that she did. But what if one of these actually helped one person? It's worth it, you know, if it helps one person. So if you're holding back for any reason and you're not going ahead and taking that first step, if you're holding back because you're guilty, you feel guilty. Well, sure. We all have things in our life we feel guilty from. Well, nothing like I do. Well, that's that's okay. God is merciful if you go to him. But do not hold back for that reason. Well, I'm not talented enough. I can't ride hymns, or I can't do a it there's something. You may just not do anything your whole life. You've turned it over to God, you've changed, someone's seen how you changed. That's your testimonial. You didn't have to get up in front of a microphone or did start writing, or you don't have to just someone seeing the change. Your testimonial is in the way that you are, and it's never too late. Well, I'm already an older guy, or I'm already, you know, here or and yacht. No, it's never too late, but you have to start. So go to him just as you are, and then start working on that change. Because if you want to change yourself, or if you want to change this world, it both starts looking in the mirror. That person there is the one that can change themselves. Nobody else can change you. God will help you. And nobody can change this world without starting with a person in the mirror.
SPEAKER_02And there's so many when we think of our of our all of our issues that there's so many in the Bible that are examples from from Saul to to David to I mean, we can just go with Moses. I mean, Moses got mad and whacked his stick on the rock, and what'd God tell him?
Starting Small And Testimony In Change
SPEAKER_01Well, I've got to go in you did not did Moses didn't he kill one of the he killed an Egyptian in Iran. So think about it, that's what them stories are in there for is to show us kind of no matter what. You know, what we say, Saul went to Paul, mm-hmm, you know. But no matter what, if you will go to him and get humble and be serious, just come as you are. He had to blind Saul to get his attention on the road, Damascus. He had to put the bright light and more or less blind him and got his attention for him to listen. Mm-hmm. Now, this may not be the thing right here, listening to this may not be the thing that blinds you to listen, but something will pop up one day. But don't wait on it. Because he may have already showed you and you didn't catch it.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and I think, you know, sometimes too that we with our communication with God, and I think that's when we can understand and hear, we can maybe we we read his word in the Bible and we see it a different way because of the communication with him, we understand a little bit different. And I think that's why it's so important that we communicate, but we communicate where we're at. In other words, it doesn't have to be some kind of perfection thing. We have a marriage group we do with a couple other couple friends, and we do it once a month. And we're we've been talking a lot about praying with your spouse and praying out loud, and it's a very challenging thing to do that. Interesting fact is that that only 4% of married Christian couples actually pray out loud together. Um, it's a very interesting thing. And I think sometimes we think it's an elaborate thing. And so I was sharing with them this week that it's just as simple as, dear Lord, thank you for my husband. Dear Lord, thank you for my my wife. Amen. And it just starts with that simple, like, Lord, I don't know all the fancy words, I don't know how to put it together, and I don't know where I'm supposed to use your name when I'm not, you know, in the prayer. So it's just as simple as, dear Lord, thank you for this. I appreciate it, what you've given me. Amen.
SPEAKER_01And then a little later think about what you can thank him for again. The most important thing he wants is to be is to praise him for what all he's done. If you don't see what he's done, you need to spend time studying. That you can just study by opening your eyes to where you're at in this world and the opportunities he's given us. And I mean by that is may not be financially, may not be physically, but the opportunity is to come to him and enjoy his kingdom. There is kingdom, there is heaven on earth, and that's whenever you join in and you get saved, there is heaven on earth because you understand when things ain't always gonna be right, but you have comfort with him. But then also the next step is you have everlasting life with him.
Biblical Examples Of Imperfect People
SPEAKER_02And and and you come just like the altar call, it's come as you are. If you don't have any shoes, you come. If you've had an ugly past, you come. If you don't have the right pants on, you come. Now I think sometimes we think, especially sometimes when we're going to to church sometimes, in general, we think we have to be a certain, look a certain way, wear a certain thing, but God doesn't see that. He sees what's in our heart. Where do we need to be? What who do we need? We cry out to him, and that is what he's looking for. Because we can dress up real pretty, but like they say, you can't put lipstick on a pig. It's still a pig.
SPEAKER_01Yep, exactly. You know, I mean, I I feel like that you are a tire that can show respect if you have it. If you have it, you should wear a tire man, woman alike, that shows respect to him. Not uh because I've got a real nice tie. I want to impress everybody with my real nice tie, though I wear that tie for anybody else in there. That's I'm doing that for me because I said I. But, you know, I'll wear a jacket or I wear clean up to go to church because I I want to show him respect that I respect him. Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_02And it's really just it is you want to show up, you know, because you do respect, so you want to say, how well can I show up today? And that and and that looks different for everybody. And so, and I think too many times we compare how we show up.
SPEAKER_01Don't worry about how they did. Go back and look in the mirror and say, Why did I truly wear this, or why am I truly wearing this, or how do I look today to present myself to the Lord? But there again, that's kind of every day.
SPEAKER_02I mean, yeah, it's it's I mean, we should be saying, you know, every day. Here I am, Lord, what what can I do? These are my struggles, these are my praises, these are my everything's and and what would you have me do today? And I always think of it as, you know, here I am is like I'm a vessel. You know, and what can he do through me? And that may that may be through the words I speak, maybe through the actions, it may be through my prayers, maybe through my thoughts, but what can he do with me today? When we come and say, Here I am, Lord, good, bad, and ugly, here I am.
SPEAKER_01That's what Miss Elliot did. She just said, I come just as I am, I can't do these things. And all she could see with that, she couldn't even see what she ended up doing. So we never know where it's gonna go. Yep. Yep. Yes. Lead us in prayer. I'll lead us in prayer and we'll close this one. Dear Lord, we just pause and give great thanks to you for your understanding and your grace. Without your grace, Lord, we would have no hope. Lord, as we examine our own lives, Lord, it's not comparing, but it is looking at how we can better ourselves, better, be a better listener to your word, better serve you just as we are. We don't have to go try to be anything great, just come and serve you just as we are, in any capacity that we can. Please open our hearts and our minds to this. Lord, we do thank you for everything you've given us on this earth, Lord, and for your son to give us everlasting life. We come to you in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen.
Simple Prayer And Everyday Praise
SPEAKER_02And thank you to each of you for joining us on The Road Traveled. And as always, if you enjoy the episode, if we encourage you to share it, to subscribe either on the Road Travel podcast or on the Road Traveled YouTube. I mean, of course, find value in it, you know, definitely subscribe, share it with family and friends so we can also meet them on their road travel. And so uh we just look forward to seeing you down the road.
SPEAKER_00You've been listening to The Road Travel, where real faith meets real life. Remember, every step matters, even the hard ones. So keep walking your road with courage, conviction, and Christ leading the way. Until next time, your hosts, Aaron and Allen, say we'll see you down the road.