Kingdom Over Culture Podcast
Kingdom Over Culture is the bold, unfiltered podcast for believers who are ready to live set apart in a culture that keeps trying to blend us in.
Hosted by Ashley Potter—worship leader, creative, and voice for the remnant—this show is a raw and honest look at what it means to walk out Kingdom living in real life. From surrender and spiritual discipline to cultural pressure and identity, Ashley and her guests unpack what it means to choose obedience over ease and righteousness over relevance.
Whether you're just beginning your faith journey or you’ve been running with Jesus for years, this podcast will challenge, equip, and remind you that you were never called to fit in—you were called to stand out.
Kingdom Over Culture Podcast
What Does Your Soul Value?
Have you ever felt caught between two worlds—trying to follow Jesus while being bombarded by cultural messages that pull you in the opposite direction? That tension sits at the heart of this inaugural episode of Kingdom Over Culture, where host Ashley Potter and her mother Shana Ruff dive deep into what it truly means to live as kingdom citizens in today's world.
Starting with the challenging words of 1 John 2:15-17—"Do not love the world or the things in the world"—this mother-daughter conversation unpacks the profound differences between God's kingdom values and the world's systems. They tackle head-on the three worldly temptations that constantly vie for our allegiance: desires of the flesh, desires of the eyes, and the pride of life. With refreshing honesty, Ashley shares her own struggles with self-control and trusting God's provision when it contradicts cultural definitions of success.
What sets this discussion apart is how practical it becomes. From parenting decisions to career choices, from community building to Scripture reading habits, Ashley and Shana explore what "exercising righteousness" looks like in everyday moments. They challenge listeners to consider whether they're merely adding God to their schedule or truly building their lives around His kingdom priorities. As Shana poignantly observes, "What we think is valuable, God thinks we should walk on"—a perspective-shifting statement that makes us reconsider everything we chase after.
Whether you're new to faith or have been walking with Christ for decades, this conversation offers both challenge and encouragement for the journey. You'll walk away with a fresh understanding of what it means to be "in the world but not of it" and practical wisdom for choosing God's kingdom over culture every single day. And don't miss the promise of part two, where they'll tackle the difficult but transformative topic of suffering in the Christian life.
What's up everybody. Welcome to Kingdom Over Culture. My name is Ashley and I am your host. I'm so excited to launch this podcast on today with a very, very special guest that is very near and dear to me. But before we get started, I just want to introduce myself and introduce this podcast to you. This is something that the Lord has just really placed on my heart to really pour into my generation, to talk about the topic of what does it look like to live in the kingdom of God, in this culture, in this day and age? So that's what we're going to be talking about over the next few weeks in every episode of this podcast. So we're going to jump right into it. I have here with me my mom, shanna Ruff. Welcome, mom, hello. Hello, I'm so glad to have you here with me. That was so good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you were really good at that.
Speaker 1:Oh, you're so sweet, I love you. Oh, my gosh, this is my mom in real life. I've known her for 33 years and she's a discipling me from the beginning, and so I really appreciate that. Mom, just the time that you took out to not only show me what a godly woman looks like at church, but at home as well yeah, yeah, so I honor you for that.
Speaker 2:I feel emotional right now.
Speaker 1:I love you.
Speaker 2:Oh, mommy, my baby is grown, doing her thing I love it.
Speaker 1:I love it. I love it. We're going to jump right in. Today. We have a really great topic. This is something that I have been teaching on in small groups. The few times I've taught from the stage, I teach from this message. This is something that the Lord has placed on me and I think that it is our. It's going to be our staple scripture for this podcast and it's 1 John. Hold on. So if you have your Bibles with you, go ahead and pull it out. We're going to turn to 1 John, the book number two, and we're looking at 15 through 17.
Speaker 1:And when I first read this scripture I'm not going to lie I felt some kind of way. I was very confused, I was very perplexed, but I was also convicted and I wanted to know more. And it simply says do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him, For all that is in the world the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes and the pride of life is not from the father, but is from the world, and the world is passing away along with his desires. But whoever does the will of God abides forever, Mom. What comes to mind when you hear that scripture, or hear those scriptures?
Speaker 2:It reminds me of the scriptures that says we are in the world, right, we know that we're in this world, but it warns us not to conform to this world. Yeah, we know that we're in this world, but it warns us not to conform to this world. And so what that means to me is that, first of all, I need to know where I came from. Right, I need to understand where I come from, and my husband always your dad, always used this. He always says this how do you view God, right? So our perspective of Christianity is rooted in how we view God. Commonly, for me, I view God as father. It's very easy for me to see him as father, probably because I had a good earthly father, so it's easy for me to recognize God as father. So if I look at God as father and the scripture tells me that I was adopted into his family, then I need to understand the dynamic of the family of God. What does that mean? What does my father do? How does my father live? How does my father move? Because now, not only is my father, is God my father, he is God, he is ruler of everything. So I am in this family. That is foreign to me because now, remember, the scripture says that we have to be born again. So now I'm a new, I'm a part of this family. I got to understand what it means. What does that look like? My father is seated on a throne, but I'm here on earth. What does that look like? My father is seated on a throne, but I'm here on earth. What does that look like?
Speaker 2:So the Bible also tells us that there's two kingdoms at the same time, and so we are a part of the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God, and there's a kingdom that's here on earth. And so which one should I operate as? Because right now I'm just here, I'm occupying. Jesus told a parable about a man who left, and he told his servants to occupy while I am away. So what does that mean? What does it look like for me to occupy until Christ comes back? And so he gives us a way to live. Not only gives us a way, he deposits a part of himself into us through the Holy Spirit. Yes, that shows us how to live and how to operate in this, in this life. It's so much to it, and I just love this scripture because it tells you, ok, what's in this world.
Speaker 1:Right, what are the things to look out for? What are those things? Because it can be confusing when you read do not love the world or the things in the world. And then you have john 3, 16 that says but god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. So I can see someone who is new in christ reading this or hearing this right now and they're like so, huh, god can love the world, but I can't.
Speaker 1:And I think that the second line, the second line and the second, the verse after that, it gives you context. Not only does it say do not love the world, it says or the things of this world. So it's letting you know, okay, what we're talking about. We're not talking about creation, we're not even talking about the things that we're experiencing per se. It's talking about the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes and pride of life. And I think that this scripture, in particular, is so relevant for today, because everything is desire of the flesh. We're in this society where we want more and more and more and more and more, to where we're never content.
Speaker 1:I think I laughed and told you the other day I went on a fast a few weeks ago and I was just, you know, like, just trying to really hear from the Lord and the only thing I learned, the only thing I the only revelation I received, is that my self-control is at a all time low. I feed myself what I want, when I want. I do not withhold food. I have a saying, and it's terrible, but I've been saying it for a very long time If I die tomorrow, at least I will have eaten good every day of my life.
Speaker 1:My Lord, you know, my mama fed me good, but then also, I don't like to waste no meals. If it don't taste good, I'll just not eat. I would rather just wait until I can eat what I want. And the Lord showed me you're spoiled. That is the desire of the flesh and you do not deny yourself. And I had to really sit with that. Like Lord, you are so right. When I want Thai food, I'm going to spend every cent I have because I want that Thai food, that restaurant that we always go to, the Chinese one you know I'm on a Chinese kick. But getting that flesh under control, like knowing this, is what love of the world looks like. It looks like no self-control.
Speaker 2:Yeah. I think, though, that when you look at what it's saying in this scripture and what John 3, 16, 16 is saying, the word world is different, right? So in John 3, 16, god is talking about? He is talking about his people. He's talking to people of every nation, of every tongue, for God so loved the people that are in the world that he gave his only begotten son, right, right, that are in the world that he gave his only begotten son, right, right. So, then, when the scripture talks about not loving the things of the world, don't love the world in this scripture is talking about world system, yes and so, and the things that are possessed in the world. So we are not to love them, yeah, yeah and so, yeah, a part of the process of us walking out, because scripture talks about us being imitators of Christ. Right, there are some self denials. That self denial that needs to come with that, right, we can't love everything. We can't be a part of everything.
Speaker 2:The scripture tells us that Jesus also was tempted right In every way that he was tempted. So, within this world system, we are tempted, right. We are tempted to overindulge when the scripture tells us not to. We are tempted to desire things that are against God.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've been in the Old Testament reading and frequently you would see God put these, give the children of Israel these rules, and as soon as something happens or they get to be close to another group of people, they pick up their culture Right, they start worshiping their gods and they start sinning against God. And so we cannot think that we're any different as soon as we come into certain areas and not to mean that you can't be out with anybody, but because we see Jesus always was out, he was always out with a group of people, but the Bible tells us that he sinned, not Right. He didn't change his character, he didn't change who he was. But we have to be careful and that we remember who we are, that we listen to the Holy Spirit when he's convicting us or when he's trying to change course, so that we not don't be susceptible to sin and sinning.
Speaker 1:That's the word. That's the word that I really want to get to. But before we get there, I want to just look at verse 17, because I think that, all in all, we operate. One of the reasons why we cling to the things in this world is because we don't have a eye for heaven. We don't have a eye or a heart that is set on what's after this and 17,.
Speaker 1:Verse 17 says the world is passing away, along with its desires, and I think that we just have a mindset that this world is so it's forever, and that is such a lie. I think that that is one of that's one of the biggest lies that keeps us tangled and tied to this world and to the, to the systems of this world, because we don't. We don't really act like we believe that there's something after this, like we live in a YOLO society. You only live once, and we operate in that, in that mindset like, oh, I'm only going to, I'm only have today to do this or only have this life to do this, but God has promised us so much more on the other side and so, as Christians, we really should be operating in expectation of our next.
Speaker 2:That's like you know, like when you go to college.
Speaker 1:You are expecting, like I'm doing this work because I wanted to get a degree so that I can have a better future. There's a better future after this, and I think that scriptures like this helps us and reminds us to set our eyes on the prize that is that is before us, and it is a heavenly prize, not a trip to Fiji, not you know what. We the beauty, even the things that we can experience in this world. It is so great, but God has so much greater, and I think that this, this scripture, just really really reminds us that the things of this world are not forever. Yeah, it's not, it's not forever, and that tells me that it don't even matter that much, like we put so much weight on the things that the culture tells us as we get to the bag, get to this.
Speaker 1:All of these things are so important to us as a culture, but it's not important to God. That's good. Yeah, it really isn't. Yeah, it really is. And I mean, as you read First John over and over, he emphasizes love people, love God, love people, love God, love people. And I believe that when we do that, all the all, the extra, it just it just falls off.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's good, that's good. I think I like that scripture in Luke 19 that I was telling you about that the master who went away and he told his servants to occupy until they come. Right, yeah, because then the question is then well, what, what am I supposed to be doing until until he returns? Like what, what does that look like? Well, that's why God gives each one of us gifts and talents, and so we already use those, and that's how we occupy, we engage in business, you know, we get a job, we work, we meet people, we love people, just like you said, and we love God.
Speaker 2:I do think, though, for a lot of believers, what trips us up is temporary satisfaction. We want that temporary fix, right and immediate. We want it immediate. We don't want to, like you said, we don't want to deny ourselves, and in this world, right, we can see. I can see you, I can touch you, I can taste food you, I can touch you, I can taste food, I can go and have a wonderful night out, and I can experience that. But sitting with God almost feels uncomfortable if you don't make it a part of life, and so I think that this world system has been great at keeping us busy so that our minds are not on God.
Speaker 1:And giving us a false gratification. Yeah, absolutely, Because I mean as many. I love vacation. You know you and dad took us on some great vacations that I still remember to this day. Um, but even as an adult now, I mean I, I love to go on trips, I love just doing all the things, Right. But when you get back home, you back to reality, Right, and it's like if we're always chasing a better feeling, when do we take the time to say, hey, you know what this is tiring? I know I got to a point in my walk with the Lord when I was just like God, this can't be it, Like this can't be what you created me for.
Speaker 2:I would question then I would question what is a better feeling? And you know this just recently, in over past November, I had to have a kidney transplant and one of the things that, if you go through a period of suffering, that happens is that you have a better perspective, because a lot of things that we think feel great are so temporal. It's so temporal and I found myself focusing more on things that were eternal than the things that were temporary and, um, but fixing my eyes on that, I question whether I really did those things, like you said, really mattered. The things that, um, I might, we might, we find gratifying here on earth, um, are those things that are going to be passed away, are going to pass away. So where should I find my joy and my happiness? Well, I should find that in him. And if I don't have that, god, help me to love the things that you love more than the things that I have grown to love in this world. Yeah, help me to feel satisfied. And what you have given me, assign me to do while I wait for your return, yeah, help me to love the things that you've given me.
Speaker 2:One of the passages scripture says that, oh, that a wife should love her own home. She should love her own husband. Help me to love what you've given me. So many times we compare ourselves or compare our lives with someone else, or we wish we had more than what we have Right, and God has given us everything. He has already given it to us, so why don't I see it as everything? And so I find myself getting deeper and deeper in the word, so that I am not loving the things of the world, that I'm loving what he loves. What does my father think that I should be doing? What does my father tell me that I should love and what does my father tell me that I should hate?
Speaker 1:Yeah, oh, you know what, that you just kind of brought me to a scripture and I hope that I can find it. Oh my gosh, it's so good, is this it? But there's, there's a scripture and I can't. It's in first John. I don't know if, even when I do get saved, when I give my life to Jesus, there is still. I still have to build up my strength to be able to combat certain things spiritually.
Speaker 1:And I think that it can be. Really it can just bring someone down when they enter into Christ, or maybe they've been walking with Christ for a while and they feel like I'm continuously battling these same things. I'm going to church, I'm listening to worship music, but I think that many of us have not been taught how to really be disciples, how to really walk out this thing and I love that scripture oh, I want to find it so bad. That says exercise righteousness, because we can exercise sinning and not even thinking of think about it. But how do we exercise righteousness in our everyday lives?
Speaker 1:The other day, the girls were just acting up and I really, you know, my immediate thing is to meet your energy, because you getting on my nerves, you know, and I was reminded that I have to exercise righteousness in my home with my girls because, even though I might not be talking about Jesus or I might not be speaking scripture, they're looking to me for spiritual guidance and so my reactions and my actions are discipling them without mentioning a scripture. And so I've just been working on myself to like not meet their energy and being able to have those conversations and come to them in a way that's more calm and not just flipping off in the moment, because I'm like sometimes just like girl sit down, but no, why, why, why is you on the stairs crying what's up, what's what's wrong? Oh, you hit your pinky toe. Let mommy come look at it, because you know, sometimes they just want to be coddled, sometimes they just want to be babied. But exercising righteousness, even in the small things, how would the Lord deal with me in this? And he's so kind and he's so patient, and I think we can look at the big things, like, oh, I'm not, I'm not doing these big sins, or da, da, da, da, da. Like God's looking at us for where we are. He's not saying, oh, you better than him because you're not a murderer. No, what are the things that you're dealing with? For me, gluttony dealing with in your life? What are the things that you have to surrender in continuing that walk of exercise and righteousness?
Speaker 1:Where I am, I think the flip side of it is just being First, john 3, 14, 10. Thank you guys. You know what, and I had it right there First, john 3, 4 through 10. You know, and I had it in my notes. We're going to read it. Okay, everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness. Sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning. My God today.
Speaker 2:Correct and do we see when we don't respond like how Christ responds even to our children, as sinning? Come on, yeah, you know. I think that we have to question, right, do you put on Christianity just when you go out the door? No, this is supposed to be who you are. You're supposed to be Christlike at all times. It's nothing that you put on and you take off. You know. You hear people say, you know.
Speaker 1:I'm about to put it down. I'm about to put it down. Don't let it put you down, oh my God, You'd be real sad that day.
Speaker 2:I'm like what if Jesus comes?
Speaker 1:That's the kind of stuff I'm scared of. A healthy fear of the Lord.
Speaker 2:And so yeah, like that's how I think I don't ever want want. This is who I am yeah this is not just what I do, what I do and so, even with my kids, my children like you, your brother, your sisters, I remember that and no matter how much you might, I might not like what you're doing, I am still God's child and I'm still light. Am I going to be light or am I going to be darkness? I'm going to be light.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I can. I mean, I can definitely testify you and dad are not perfect, but you're consistent. You're consistent. I've never seen a different person in the home that I've seen outside. And I feel like because of that, it kind of skewed my perspective and perception growing up and made me a little green to think that that's just how people are. Um, and now that I'm an adult, you know, you know I'm learning more and more the ways of people, but I can also be really, really grateful for the upbringing that I had.
Speaker 1:Specifically when it comes to your character, you guys were consistent in God. I knew any given night I was going to wake up with oil in my eye, or I'm going to wake up at the crack of dawn and my daddy is sitting there at that table just reading his word. I mean consistency, and I saw that Unfortunately, I know that's not everyone's story and so I was able to see this is what walking with God looks like, this is what living for Christ looks like, and it shifted. You know, sometimes this started out with no pants and you know, you know makeup and all that stuff, but then it wasn't more about the outward appearance but what it was inside, and so I'm really, really, I'm really grateful just to be able to have seen it.
Speaker 1:But now, it's one thing to even see it, but now having to actually walk in it yourself, I think that sometimes people can be like, oh well, you know, I didn't see that growing up and think that just because you saw it make it easy to do, that's not the case. You still have to allow the Holy Spirit. That was the work of the Holy Spirit, that wasn't y'all. And so now me, I have to learn to yield to the Holy Spirit in every single area of my life. It's easy to dedicate things like my business or those things that I dedicate to God leading worship, those pockets of my life where literally the Holy Spirit dwells because I lean on him so much. But it's when I get to the moment or to the point where I feel like, oh, I can handle this, I don't need, I don't need, you know, god's help in this area, and not intentionally, it's just in the way that, the way that I move and having to course correct and say no, even in this. Ok, my daughter is about to send me off.
Speaker 1:Lord, holy Spirit leave my babies alone, mama, please back to the scripture, because you and your grandkids is something else. After that it says little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous. Whoever practices, whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil. Yeah, and I think that you know people can get discouraged reading something like this, like well, I'm never going to be perfect, I'm never not going to sin, but the key word here is practice, right.
Speaker 2:Is that a part of your lifestyle?
Speaker 1:Is it? Is it yeah? Is it who you are? Is?
Speaker 2:it what you're consistently doing.
Speaker 1:Think about what practicing is.
Speaker 2:Did you wake up trying to sin? Right, you already plan to go sin tonight because it's Friday night.
Speaker 1:It's like we make excuses. It's when we make those excuses of, oh, this is the way I am, or, oh, god don't really care about that. I think that my generation in general has just skewed the word of God so much so to fit our, our culture and, honestly, to try to make us not feel bad about our sin. Yeah, that we have created a false gospel that speaks to you, know your purpose and all these things, and it's like you can walk in your purpose every day of your life and never do it in the name of the Lord. Some of us don't have no choice but to operate in our gift, because it's the only thing we're good at, but it doesn't mean that I did it in his name or for him or for him, um, and I I'm.
Speaker 1:I think that just it's really, really important, now more than ever, that people honestly get into the word of God for themselves and not cling to the word of man so much. Um, I actually have found myself in a season of deconstruction of this is what I was raised under, or this is what I learned about God, not even through y'all, but just y'all kept me in church. So these might be certain things that I picked up and now I'm an adult and I'm reading the new scripture and I'm like, right it didn't say that.
Speaker 1:It wasn't even talking about that. Um, and so now having to for me, being a church girl, having to unlearn a lot of church things that I've learned that are not kingdom things I think I'm still there too, yeah, there's so much in the time that you were born until now, things that were instilled in you.
Speaker 2:And I think that we were talking about this the other night in my small group and we're talking about the passage of scripture that where Paul says Paul says, follow me as I follow Christ, where Paul says Paul says follow me as I follow Christ, and the way that in some, in a period of time, and sometimes even today, where people have gotten in trouble with that following other people, but we miss the part as I follow Christ, and this is why they miss the part that says as I follow Christ, because they never learned how to follow Christ and how what Christ did because they don't get in the word for themselves, and so we like to blame the preacher.
Speaker 2:But the Bible tells us to study, to show yourself yourself approved unto God, and so we need to take responsibility of us learning the word of God and learning God. How does God act? What is God's voice sound like? What are the things that God says, what are the things that he does? And so then we are able to decipher what is truth and what is a lie.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:And so we really need to take that responsibility on for us to get into the word and to know for ourselves and not get given to false, to false doctrine. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there's. There's a wave of Christianity that's happening. I don't know if you've noticed it on social media or anything, but it's like it's almost trendy to be Christian, and which is funny, because in other places of the world Christians are literally being martyred, but here in the United States it's big business. It is big business and it worries me a little bit, because there are so many voices out there and literally you can pick and choose. Who makes me like? Whose? Whose word do I align with more? You better read your Bible. You better read your Bible.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you better read your Bible, I don't I? Um, I am at a point right now whereas I used to have a pastor that says to eat the meat and spit out the bones, right, and so that's how I take the word of God coming from someone else, but the meat I go when I go into God's presence and I go in his presence daily and read the word. That's where I get most of my nutrition from. Let me say that, say it that way. This is the where I get my nutrition from, and if I'm waiting for somebody else to feed me, then you're going to always be left lacking. But if I go into the word myself and I trust my father to meet me, I trust the Holy Spirit to give me understanding and to feed me, because the scripture says that man should not live by bread alone.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but every word that proceed out the mouth of God, out of the mouth of God or out of the mouth of the preacher, come on Out of the mouth of God or out of the mouth of the preacher. Come on Out of the mouth of God or out of the mouth of the podcaster, right, right, right Out of the mouth of God. Or the little few second clip I see on YouTube Out of the mouth of God Right, and so we know that the word of God is his written word. So why are we going to be fed anywhere else Getting the word? Why are we going to be fed anywhere else Getting the word? When we go to churches, we talk about coming in as a body. It's normally for fellowship. It's fellowship with one another, because we need those moments Iron, sharp and iron as well as outside of the church, not just in a church building, because we are the church, but we are the fellowship outside of the church. So, yeah, you should be getting your nutrition from the word itself.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I think that sometimes it can get. It can be hard for people that are just starting in the word. You know, I'm currently writing a book and one of the things that I'm writing on right now is the struggle between everything that I've known my entire life. Now I found the Lord. I'm at this intersection in my life where I have everything that I've experienced and the experience I've had with him. What would you say to the person that is trying to figure out how to move forward in this life dedicated to Christ? But it is still in Egypt, is still so intertwined with today's culture, the ways of this world, and they're trying to figure out how to move forward in Christ.
Speaker 2:I think that it's like in any family, right, you going to be a part of your now a part of a new family Got to start out small. Of a new family, you got to start out small.
Speaker 2:I think one of the things that is missing that God you can see throughout scripture and how the word and things were supposed to be passed on from generation to generation that God always had this type of discipleship in mind. I think it's important for new babes to be discipled. I think the problem is is that a lot of places don't offer that anymore, and so babes get lost and it's unfortunate, and so babes get lost and it's unfortunate. But I do think that God loves us so much that he'll provide someone to help them and to help guide them along the way. I've had many mentors in my life who have helped me to understand the word more, who was good at giving me sound wisdom, and I so appreciate that, and they were God sent, and so I do feel like they need to. Number one find a place to be, find a church, find a good Bible teaching church where you can grow, and, of course, for any babe, they don't walk first, they crawl.
Speaker 1:So give yourself grace, because it can be so daunting coming into especially a church where there's a lot of mature Christians that are good and deep in their word, and every time you have a conversation, people are just spitting scriptures left and right and you're like I know God created the world, I know John 316. That's it, that's all. That's all I got, and so I really, I really like that, you know, being able to give yourself grace for where you are, because everybody started somewhere. I think for me it's really important that new believers find community in other believers. I would say, even though I grew up in church and I had God fearing parents, I experienced God for myself numerous times throughout my childhood. I have testimony on testimony, but I would say I started I feel like I started to really experience what it was like to be a part of the body of Christ when I joined a small group and it, honestly, that took place in those spaces was mind blowing to me and, like you said, it was like God created ways for us to function as a body in his word, if we would just do what he said.
Speaker 1:I know that your small group is on Titus and being a Titus to women is that? That's what it is. It's about generational discipleship, generational discipleship and it's it's so implanted in the word of OK. This is how, this is how we should operate from generation to generation, and this is how the young women should be, and this is how the old women, older women, should be, and this is what their relationship should look like. I think that I would encourage that woman or young man who is new to Christ to not be afraid to open yourself up to people, to people that are older than you. Don't feel like you just need to stick with people that are in your age range, because, I mean, you can have great discussions here, but you can gain wisdom here. And, just like you, I feel like the Lord has been very gracious to put women in my life in every season of my life, even when I wasn't, you know, with him for real. For real, I had a boss who loved the Lord, and every day I come to work, she's talking to me about the Lord and I'm like, what is this Like, ma'am, what?
Speaker 1:And so I think that just being open to people who may not look like what you thought was going to come, or come in the package of what you thought was going to be your disciple. Your discipler, you know, in this season it might be the old lady that you see at the grocery store. You know that you that always strikes up a conversation with you, or that person at work, that is always that Bible thumper and you, like man, she'd be getting on my nerves. But now you done got saved and you'd be kind of like she telling the truth. You know, being open to having those relationships, and I think that the enemy has done such a good job at skewing the perception of relationships and intimacy in relationships to for our culture and for this generation so badly to where we are. We would much prefer to be closed off. We would much prefer to be by ourselves. We don't really. I mean, I see it all the time People love talking about how they don't have community and how they don't need anyone.
Speaker 1:But, that is so opposite of Christ in the way that God created us to be in fellowship and in community.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and it's because we run away from conflict. Right, we don't know how to resolve conflict in the biblical way, so we run away from community because we don't want our feelings hurt. And then, if our feelings hurt, because we are quick to lay down our religion.
Speaker 1:Right, right right.
Speaker 2:You know we might respond in the wrong way, and so we are happy to not be in community, and what that does is it stunts our growth, because God grows, matures us in community. Yeah, and it's hard for me because I'm an introvert. So I love being my by myself, I love quiet time, I love being home just playing the music and maybe washing the dishes or doing whatever. But even so much now, so much so. Now God is like pushing me out there to, to, to make friendships and to plan to be with, with community, because you won't ever mature. It's like keeping a baby at home.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:No social skills, come on. Don't know how to relate to people Out of touch.
Speaker 1:Yeah. And then it keeps you in that cycle of not knowing how to handle offense, because if you've never put yourself in a position to be offended, you don't have to deal with it.
Speaker 2:Exercise and righteousness.
Speaker 1:Exercise that righteousness. Hey, that's that's it. That is so it, and I think that also. It's so funny how everything can go in these like right back to this scripture of the desire of the flesh, the desire of the lust of the eye. One version says the lust of the eye is and the pride of life. Ma, you got your phone.
Speaker 1:Can you pull up this scripture in the message version? Just for the ones who are still like not 100% understanding scripture or they need a little bit more plain, I tell you what I'm not a person that clings to the message, but the message version of this scripture is mind blowing. It's really, really good. I'm with you. I'm first John, I'm first John 2, 15 through 17. And you know how to message. They got that whole little. You know blurb. But if you could pull that up, I think that that will really speak to someone. That will really speak to someone, Because one of the things it says in that scripture is to not cling to the culture without even thinking something like that. It's really, really good. When you get it, say amen.
Speaker 2:Amen, amen, amen. Don't love the world's ways, don't love the world's goods. Don't love the world's goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father, my God, practically everything that goes on in the world wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important, has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him. The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting, is on the way out. But whoever does what god wants is set for eternity. That was 17 that was 17.
Speaker 2:That was 17. Man, that's so good. Yeah, we just want more and more, and more and more. We can't ever get enough. We're not satisfied, right, we don't ever get satisfied. We always want more. Right, we don't ever get satisfied, we always want more. And I think I asked you the question the other day when is when is more enough? Right, when, when, what is that place where?
Speaker 1:it is enough for you. Contentment is so anti-cultural. Let me tell you something. It almost sounds like a cuss word, Like to be content Right To today's culture.
Speaker 2:It makes you feel like you're settling. People look at that word like you're settling. But when is more enough? And here's what happens with that desire for more, right it's. It's almost like A two. You could say two people, two people, two home, mother and father, right? Both parents are working, both parents are working. When is more enough? And look who gets neglected, especially if you have children, when both of you are out the home, both of you are coming and going, when do they become a priority?
Speaker 1:Right?
Speaker 2:No, no, because we're not good at prioritizing things. That should be to disciple, train them up in the way that they should go, and where does that way, that is mean, the way to follow God and that way of following God? So when is the training happening?
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:And who is it happening by? Because what do we do with them? Right, we throw them in daycare or they're in school all day. By the time you get home, you're too busy and tired to truly disciple them.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So we have to have in our mind what does it mean for me and my house to follow God?
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Because everybody can't be after the bag.
Speaker 1:Come on, you know, the Lord has really, really dealt with me over the last few years. I was working a job, my last job that I worked in. I would say this often I'm never leaving. I'm going to work here until I can't work no more. It was an amazing job. I was making amazing, like the best money I've ever made in my life. I got, you know, bonuses every three months. It was, it was the best job. I loved it.
Speaker 1:Um, but I was working all the time and when the Lord told me it was time for me to let go of that job and like transition, I shoot in every transition, the Lord continues to transition me and I'm like, what about the money? But what about the 401k? What about you know the benefits Lord like and I remember this was probably 2020, 2021, one of those and I was doing makeup full time at that point and but it gave me the freedom to take my kids to school every morning, to pick them up from school. We had devotion on the way to school. We were able to ease our way into our day. I wasn't, you know, trying to rush, get to work. You know having to pay extra for early care and all these things.
Speaker 1:And I remember I was getting so antsy with God. I was just like it's following you really this hard, it's being obedient to you really this hard. And I remember like really saying in my heart, like God, if something don't change, I'm gonna go get me a job. And the Lord said to me I was laying in my bed and I'm literally having this conversation and the Holy Spirit said to me you really trust a man to deposit a check in your account every two weeks, more than you trust me to provide for you? Right, and I had to. I that thing hit me like a punch to the stomach and I had to repent and say God, I'm sorry, yeah, because whatever it is that you do have for me, because it's from you, that means it's good enough and it's my portion, yeah. And I think that a lot of times we want more because we don't want to steward what we have. It's what we value, it's what we value.
Speaker 2:It's what we think is valuable. God think we should walk on it.
Speaker 1:They said one more time what we think is valuable.
Speaker 2:God thinks we should walk on.
Speaker 1:And the things that we don't think, we don't hold as valuable, are the things that God is trying to get us to like. Yeah.
Speaker 2:So that's why it is important for us to renew our minds daily, daily. We have to daily renew our minds because what we think is valuable and important yeah, god doesn't. He holds us valuable and important?
Speaker 1:Yeah, god doesn't. He holds us valuable and important. Yes, I love that. To bring it back to what you said about John 3, 16, like, god wasn't talking about the earth that he created or the world the way that it was, he was talking about his people. I sent my son to die for the people, because that is where my heart is. He created everything, but he also created. He created a way for us to get to him, not for the animals, not for the plants, not for the water or the earth that he created, but the humans that are in his likeness, the people that he loves, not just that he wants to dwell with us.
Speaker 2:Yes, you know, when we're so busy going, if we are honest, we think about him. We are not thinking about him, but God wants to be the center of everything that we're doing.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh. Yes, I remember, you know, when the Lord was telling me to close my business and focus on doing this podcast and my kids and finishing writing a book that he'd been telling me to write for the last five years, I was just, you know, like it don't. It's not, it's not making sense. And why does my version of success have to look like this? Every I literally had this conversation with God. Everybody get to do whatever they want, but I said I want to be obedient to you and I want my yes to you to mean something. And now I'm just following everything that you say and it's like God. Why couldn't you lead me to something that would be a little bit more financially stable? You know something to where I didn't have to. Then you wouldn't trust him. Trust you for everything. Then you would For everything.
Speaker 1:I remember the Lord told me it was 2019. I'm bringing you into a trusting season and it's so funny because we, as church people, we use that kind of like season word for everything, but in our minds we think of. In my mind, I'll say I thought you know season, winter, summer. This will be a few months. I've been in the trusting season since 2019. And you will be in that season for the rest of my life. I was like God. I didn't know I was going to have to trust you for eats and for sleep, I mean, for every single morsel of food I get.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that means you're choosing him.
Speaker 1:Every time you choose him, he wants us to choose him that takes me to such a deeper thought that we'll talk about offline. But that is the other side of salvation. It's the daily choosing.
Speaker 2:Choose them every day.
Speaker 1:And I think that I mean it brings me back to that scripture of exercising righteousness in every choice, at every situation. We have a choice. What are you going to choose? Are you going to choose sin or are you going to choose righteousness? Are you going to choose your flesh and your way and your own thoughts, your own perceptions, or are you even going to sit down and say, god, what do you want me to do in this? It's not everything doesn't take. Oh, let me do a deep study in the scripture to figure out. What does the word say? Please study the scripture. But in the moment, god is so loving and kind that he says that when you seek, you will find. When you knock, I will answer. And we try to reserve that seeking for the big things, but it's in the small areas that we learn to trust him.
Speaker 2:Absolutely One of the things that I love is reading about the children of Israel, because I think their lives back then were so simple, right. Pretty much they were sheep herders and goat herders, and so they knew that daily what their daily routine pretty much would look, would look like, and in today's society, we have so much to fill our days with that.
Speaker 2:We have to pencil. We pencil God in, right, I'm going to work you in God when I can Right, sometime throughout this day I'm going to work you in, but know God says you start with me and then I'll show you where Love that. Like he, he, when he went to Abraham, he said Abraham, I'm going to show you where to go. Pretty much, just start walking. Oh, abraham, pretty much, just start walking. And, um, most of us don't live our days like that. Yeah Right, I feel like I'm living right now.
Speaker 2:We don't, we don't live our days like that. Yeah Right, I feel like I'm living. We don't, we don't live. We don't live our days like that. You know we get these jobs and they tell us when to wake up, right Cause you know you gotta be to work by 8am. So they tell you when, when, when to wake up, and when you go there, they're going to tell you what time you could take your lunch and they're going to tell you what time you get off and you got to go pick up the kids and you have to go prepare dinner and if your kids are involved in sports, you got to go all to the sports meet.
Speaker 2:By the time you get home now, you're going to watch the kids and you're going to get to bed and get them in the bed, and you're going to get to bed and get them in the bed by the time you get ready to go to bed. You're not thinking about praying, you're not thinking about doing anything. What would happen if we reversed that? What would even the system of today look like? Would we even choose?
Speaker 1:jobs differently, I think. I think in a sense people are already doing that, but not for that reason. But that's what I'm saying, yeah, it would look.
Speaker 2:It would look, it really would look differently. And I think that we are so busy that, unless we go through a period of suffering, we don't know what trust looks like. We don't know how to trust.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So suffering comes. There's a whole other conversation, and now we have to. We have to fully trust God in a way that we didn't know how to before.
Speaker 1:So what I'm hearing is part two is going to be suffering in the kingdom. Yeah, Because you can, definitely. I mean we can talk about it. But you certainly have a testimony of coming out of a period of what your suffrage looked like in kidney failure, and just not only how you were able to stand through that and not come out bitter and not come out, you know, in ways that you think I love him more.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think I believe I love him more and I can truly say had I not gone through that, I don't think I would have had this deeper level of trust and love for God that I do have today.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, you know we're going to end right here because we're going to have a part two with Mama. We got to get more into this conversation. Thank you so much, mom, for doing this with me on my very first episode, and I'm really excited about part two. We have to finish this conversation because I think it's so necessary, especially for new believers, to know how to handle suffering in Christ, to not stand in disappointment, or. It doesn't mean that he is not who he says he is, but it means that he's getting something. He's taking you to a deeper level. So thank you so much, mom, for being here with me. I love you so much. Thanks, guys, for joining me for this first episode of Kingdom Over Culture podcast. Once again, my name is Ashley Potter, I'm your host and I can't wait to see you again next time.
