June 4 2012

Show open: Monday night intro and donkey-rodeo banter

Ben introduces the show ("My name is Ben Foost"), gives the Monday-night orientation from the Pathway studios in Johnston, and the hosts joke about donkey rodeos in Missouri after one appeared in national news.

Tonight's lineup: proof #4, Jeff Arendale, snakes, advice

Ben lays out the show: tackling proof number four from GodIsImaginary.com (God versus science), a call with Jeff Arendale about his CD release, handling snakes for Jesus after a snake-handling pastor's death, and Dear LFTP advice.

Jeff Arendale CD release plug and the stolen advance copy

The hosts plug Jeff Arendale's debut CD and Saturday release party at Green Grounds Cafe in Valley Junction, joke about a coworker stealing the unreleased advance copy, and drift into coffee-drinker and milkshake banter.

Handling snakes for Jesus: setup and the grace question

Ben sets up the snake-handling topic (a pastor died within the week from a snake bite), says his first reaction is ungracious and he wants to approach it with grace, and the hosts briefly discuss legality of handling snakes state by state.

Animal mishaps: lawnmower rabbits, bird funerals, roadkill pheasant

While waiting for the Jeff Arendale call, the hosts trade stories of accidentally killing animals: a rabbit through a lawnmower at age 13, a flock of birds hit by a car followed by a roadside funeral with a stick cross, and roadkill pheasant cooked on a radiator.

Phone interview: Jeff Arendale on his debut CD 'Not Here For Me'

Jeff Arendale calls in from Skype. He describes holding his debut CD for the first time after FedEx delivered ten boxes, recording it in Nashville with session musicians who learned each song after one listen-through, growing up on top-40 radio and later on contemporary Christian music (Paul McCartney, James Taylor, Jars of Clay, Chris Tomlin), leading worship at Fellowship Community Church, and the songs' path from congregational response to the studio. Details: release party Saturday 6-9pm at Green Grounds Cafe, Valley Junction; CD not yet digital (jeffarendale.com, iTunes possible).

'Certainty' spin and radio-DJ banter

The hosts play 'Certainty' from Jeff Arendale's debut CD, then joke about their own lack of radio-DJ skill before moving into the GodIsImaginary segment.

GodIsImaginary proof #4 read aloud: 'Think about science'

• Is proof number four of GodIsImaginary.com - that science can only proceed by assuming prayer is a superstition and God is imaginary - a valid argument?

A host reads proof number four from GodIsImaginary.com: when a person is miraculously cured, a scientist looks for the natural cause; therefore only by assuming prayer is a superstition and God is imaginary can science proceed. The penicillin discovery (Fleming, 1928) is given as the example, followed by a recap of proofs #1-3 on prayer and historical gods.

Pushback: the penicillin example is weak; unexplained healings

The hosts argue the penicillin example proves nothing (nobody was praying for a petri dish; it was an accident), point to cases doctors called medically impossible (a co-host's heart condition), and ask why the author ignores healings science cannot explain.

'Science cannot break down': faith commitments on both sides

The hosts argue that insisting science will eventually explain everything is itself a faith commitment ("the great God of time will eventually show us because science never fails"), that science has been turned into a belief system excluding the supernatural, and that both sides start from premises the other will never let go of.

Why doesn't God answer prayer? Prayer as heart-molding

A host reflects that unanswered prayer is a real question for believers too, and offers a frame: prayer is sometimes God directly answering and sometimes God molding the prayer's heart (e.g., praying for an enemy). This leads into the character of God and why people feel sold "a bill of goods" about who God is.

Proof #4 verdict, proof #5 teaser, promos

The hosts close out proof #4 (disappointed in its logic; "your logic isn't logical"), preview proof #5 ("read the Bible" — the Bible is sexist, bigoted, supports slavery) for next week, joke about a host's shaved mustache, and plug the show's web and YouTube channels.

Ryan Paul Buck, Walgreens photo jokes, merch idea

The hosts mention last week's guest Ryan Paul Buck and his new CD, joke about Pants developing Walgreens photos of him and putting them in his bathroom, and toss around selling CDs as a show outlet.

Dear LFTP #1: long-distance relationship, parents' guilt

• Should a 30-year-old woman in a long-distance, cross-country relationship move to another country to live with the man, despite her parents' guilt-tripping?

Pants reads a letter from a 30-year-old woman (nicknamed "Two-Two") in a long-distance relationship with a man in another country, considering moving there to live together while her parents guilt her about abandoning them. The hosts advise: don't move in without marriage; decide if it's permanent, get married first, then move. They guess the letter undersells the parents' legitimate concern (they may never have met the man), then read the Secular answer (research women's rights in his country — noted as from Pakistan — before marrying) and respond with a joke: if you marry him, it's permanent; so is God.

Lemonade sponsor joke; JCPenney, Green Lantern, church kids song

The hosts do a joke sponsor read for "Golden Bear Lemonade" (sold only at Walgreens), then discuss JCPenney's catalog featuring a gay couple raising children, the Green Lantern being relaunched as a gay character, and react with disgust to a viral video of church kids singing "Ain't No Homo Getting to Heaven" while adults cheer — calling it unbiblical and bigoted.

Dear LFTP #2: ex-husband's vendetta in his newspaper column

• Is it ethical journalism for a divorced woman's ex-husband to use his newspaper column as a personal vendetta against her, and how can she stop it?

Pants reads a letter from a divorced woman whose bitter ex-husband, editor of a small newspaper, disparages her in his column and won't print her rebuttal. The hosts advise she can't make him stop: consider a defamation lawyer, go over his head to the paper's corporate publisher, cancel the subscription, or move to another town — and read the Secular answer agreeing a personal vendetta is not ethical journalism.

Dear LFTP #3: wedding thank-you notes and the $600 crystal

• What is proper wedding thank-you note etiquette when no note arrives for an expensive gift?

Pants reads a letter ("Disgusted in Delaware") from a woman who gave an expensive crystal wedding gift and never received a thank-you note. The hosts argue thank-you notes should come promptly but being outraged over them is foolish: a gift given for recognition isn't really a gift, and people shouldn't assume malice when a note may just have been forgotten. The Secular answer says a note within one to three months is proper manners.

Arendale 'Race' plug, release-party push, festival promos, snake jokes

The hosts promote Jeff Arendale's song "Race" on YouTube, urge listeners to attend the Saturday 6-9pm CD release at Green Grounds Cafe, plug next week's guest Saved on Sunday plus the Prairieland Fest and Spirit Midwest festivals (Willett, Todd Agnew), joke about concealed-snake permits, and transition into the snake-handling news story (CNN: Mack Wolford's death) and Scripture (Mark 16, Luke 10, Acts 28, Romans 6, the one-chapter Bible books).

Is it a sin to disagree with God? Election, Moses, relenting

• Is it a sin to disagree with God or not like a doctrine (e.g. election)?

A host raises a ChristianPost.com question: is it a sin to not like the doctrine of election — more broadly, to disagree with God's actions? The hosts conclude you can voice disagreement with the right heart (Moses pleading "don't destroy all the people"; God relenting) as long as you ultimately bow to God's sovereignty, and warn against waiting passively for God to script every decision instead of obeying the general command to go make disciples.

Church-sign brainstorm, Ezekiel, recap, sign-off

• What church-sign wording would draw in drivers for a 'Belt of Truth' (Ephesians 6) sermon?

A host asks for a church-sign title for this week's "Belt of Truth" (Ephesians 6) sermon that works for drivers on Merle Hay Road ("Cinch it up with truth?"), debates whether signs draw anyone in, reads Ezekiel (only grasping ~20-30%, noting the study Bible's "street theater" take on Ezekiel 4-5), recaps the night's show, and signs off.