October 22 2012

Show open: missed proofs and the two things that have to stop

The hosts open live from the Pathway Studios in Johnston Proper. A host addressed as Hudson is put on the spot after the music ends; Mike is addressed on-air. They note they missed last week's show because Kevin Lindgren was in, and re-commit to the 'God is imaginary' proofs series. A host teases 'two things that just got to stop' before the banter derails.

Pumpkin carving: the John the Baptizer pumpkin and the kids' Bible

A host recounts buying pumpkins with the kids: the kids wanted a Scooby-Doo carve, he wanted to carve John the Baptizer from a picture in a children's Bible but couldn't bring himself to tear a page out. Another host carved an LFTP logo that passersby misread. The kids out-carved the adults.

Classic Petra concert announcement and music banter

The hosts announce they will broadcast from the Classic Petra concert tomorrow at New Hope (live at 6:45, band at 7) and can interview the band, fretting about their own music knowledge. Banter ranges over Milli Vanilli, an Elvis Presley billfold photo kept as a 'movie star', and a creepy novel idea about a man whose family is the stock-photo people from picture frames. Tyler and Troy are addressed in the discussion.

Advice for the 10,000s: the weight of being Pope

Troy, addressed on-air, is called on to give Pope-on-the-balcony-style advice to the 10,000s. The hosts riff on the crushing weight of the papacy — being treated as if your words are God's words — and trade jokes about humility doses, Quaaludes, and listening to Catholic radio in southern Iowa.

Two things that got to stop, part one: game-show self-applause

The first item that has to go: game-show contestants appreciating their own answers — the Family Feud 'good answer' chant, a Wheel of Fortune letter-guesser clapping for himself. The hosts improvise absurd Feud answers ('Warlocks', 'pogo stick') and compare the contestant to 'the Uncle Jerry in the photos.'

Proof 22 from godisimaginary.com: 'count all the people God wants to murder'

• How should the 'God is imaginary' Proof 22 ('count all the people God wants to murder') be answered?

A host reads Proof 22 verbatim-ish from the website: Exodus 35:2 (Sabbath death penalty), Deuteronomy 21 (stubborn son stoned), Leviticus 20:13, the adultery statute, and Isaiah 48 ('the grass withers, the flower fades'). The site's thesis: these laws are insane, believers ignore them, and an all-powerful God would kill people himself — therefore God is imaginary.

Answering Proof 22: Mosaic law, set-apartness, and the new covenant

The hosts answer Proof 22: the verses are Old Testament law given to covenant Israel to set them apart, before Christ; the severity protects people from self-destruction (wiggle room destroys); 'murder' is a loaded word for lawful punishment the offenders knew. They add that the author is fighting God's sovereignty, not disproving God, with a Jiffy peanut-butter detour and a turn into how truth is conveyed — setting up the spiritual-warfare reflection.

Spiritual warfare in the everyday: Satan's bait and the evil within

Continuing the thread: spiritual warfare isn't demons-and-machine-guns theatrics — Satan just baits your hook with whatever pulls you from God, and the world's media leaves nooses everywhere so people hang themselves. James on the evil within is cited. One host notes the rebellious son had chances to repent before the elders, so his stoning was willful disobedience; only ~15% of people may align with God's standard.

Next week's Proof 23: the doxology

The hosts preview Proof 23, which opens with the doxology — 'Praise God from whom all blessings flow' — sung in millions of churches. They admit unfamiliarity, wonder whether it's a Bible verse, and note the 'end of Jude' doxology question; verdict: looks boring, and the site's author is back on a money train.

Mid-show announcements: site, YouTube, clips, Petra broadcast

Housekeeping: check livefromthepath.org during the week for the audio podcast and YouTube links; clips from last week's Kevin Lindgren appearance and the End of the World Game are on the clip channel. Reminder: tomorrow they broadcast live at 6:45 from the Classic Petra concert at New Hope with a band interview to follow.

Two things that got to stop, part two: drive-thru purgatory and fast food

The second item that has to go: pre-recorded drive-thru greetings, via a Bebops story where a little-kid voice turns into Barry White. Then a long riff on fast-food life — McDonald's tag-teamed drive-thrus, the late-night menu, Burger King's chicken parmesan pitch, a Cinnabon 'fresh made daily' that gets 'refreshed' in a 1970s microwave, the Taco Bell chalupa-gordita menu onion, and churros vs. Quick Trip taquitos.

The presidential debate as comedy

The hosts watched tonight's presidential debate (one listened on the radio) and mock it: two-minute lies answered by 'everything you just said is incorrect,' grandma call-outs from Gainesville, Ohio, and 'grown men trying to be leaders of the known world' shouting 'liar.'

Dear LFTP: the mother-in-law who sabotaged the cookbook

• What is the appropriate way to handle a mother-in-law who sabotages the marriage?

The reader reads a Dear LFTP letter: five years into marriage, the mother-in-law sabotaged a gift cookbook by altering ingredients so her son prefers her cooking, and took the grandson to Santa without asking. The hosts call her Cruella de Vil and advise an honest, boundaries-setting confrontation by the husband — moving away is cowardly. The 'Secular' answer is read and mocked: limit time, get recipes online, remember the kid won't remember Santa, don't cut her off.

Pope Troy on sin: stop justifying, and see it from God's side

Troy Engelinger, on the balcony as Pope Troy, advises: stop endlessly justifying sin you know is wrong — the justifications are a block. A host reframes sin as stepping out of the Lord's army to hack your own leg with a sword. Another admits leaning on 'God knew I'd do this' as comfort, warns never to be comfortable with sin (speed-bump parking-lot image), and gets the punchline 'Yeah, that's called Calvinism... We're depraved,' plus a fake caller: 'There's a reason I'm not a Calvinist. It's because I read the Bible... He needs to read Acts 7.' A final host reframes sin from God's perspective: it saddens God because we miss out on the closeness He designed.

Sign-off: thanks, Petra reminder, new website and expansion tease

The hosts thank listeners, push the podcast signup and the 'slowly get worse every week' bit, remind everyone of tomorrow's Petra broadcast, and tease a new website within the week plus big expansion announcements coming next week. Close: 'Thanks for listening. Have a good week.'