November 19 2012

Show open and 'hot footing' banter

The hosts open from the Pathway Studios in Johnston Proper with small talk about the weather, then riff on the phrase 'hot footing' — invented definitions involving walking so fast your feet get hot — as a comedy opener.

Proof 25 read-aloud: understand evolution and abiogenesis

• Does accepting evolution mean rejecting the creation story and the soul?

The hosts work through Proof 25 of the 50 proofs on GodIsImaginary.com, which argues that accepting evolution means rejecting the Genesis creation story and the soul, and that abiogenesis explains the origin of life without a supernatural being. The full proof text is read aloud, then opened to discussion.

Hosts rebut Proof 25 and defend creation

The hosts argue the proof is poorly constructed: its logic does not follow, 'abiogenesis' names a field of study rather than a solved answer, and lab synthesis still involves a creator doing the mixing. They affirm a six-day creation stance from Genesis, God's breathing the soul into Adam, science as explaining how God did things, and warn Christians to actually study the topic before speaking on it ('don't be this man on God's team').

Score so far and Proof 26 preview

The hosts award Proof 25 to God ('25 and 0'), note the GodIsImaginary.com author is back online, and preview next week's Proof 26 — 'notice that the Bible's author is not all-knowing' — reading Deuteronomy 25:11-12 aloud ('you shall cut off her hand. Show no pity') and puzzling over how that proves the author's lack of omniscience.

Station break: sponsor spots

Sponsor spots air: Valley Services Cleaning (dust-bunny bit, call Charlotte at 277-5611) and On Purpose Promotions via OnPurposePromos.com with contact Jared Roy.

Musical performance: Jeff Arendale

The show plays a performance clip of Jeff Arendale, a friend of the show, performing on Live from the Path — a song about Christ's sacrifice ('you lived... to make it possible to be born twice').

Is Hurricane Sandy God's wrath? Don't speak for God

• Was Hurricane Sandy God's wrath — does God send natural disasters as judgment?

The hosts discuss claims in some Christian circles that Hurricane Sandy was God's wrath on New York City — tied to a UN move against Israel — and reject the reasoning: God announces his own judgments in Scripture rather than leaving it to speculation, and no one has authority to declare what God is doing. They add a replacement-theology aside (the church is Israel via Romans' engrafted branch), the 'Bible filter' coffee-pot analogy for testing claims that 'the Holy Spirit is leading me,' and a Westboro mispronunciation gag.

Past clips plug: Bethany Joy Johnson and Roloff

The hosts promote last week's Bethany Joy Johnson performance clips doing well on YouTube, her upcoming Christmas show at First Baptist Church in Indianola, and the catchy Roloff song 'Who Was on the Lord's Side?' from Wings of the King.

Dear LFTP: are early guests rude?

• Is it rude for guests to show up 10 or more minutes early to a party?

A listener who hosts themed parties asks whether guests arriving 10+ minutes early are rude. The hosts say 10 minutes early is fine, the habitually late host should plan further ahead, and the early-arriving friend can wait in the car. The 'Secular' answer disagrees: arriving early is an imposition; good manners mean arriving at the appointed time.

Dear LFTP: neighbor who acts like the baby is hers

• What can my daughter say to make the neighbor realize her family is not up for grabs?

A grandmother writes that her daughter Megan's neighbor takes the grandbaby out to eat and seems to want people to think the baby is hers, while Megan 'feels powerless.' The hosts question whether the claim is literal or grandma's speculation, advise Megan to simply say no — she is the mother — and stay firm-but-kind. The 'Secular' answer: Megan is not powerless; just say what is making her uncomfortable and be firm.

Pope-style advice: the first four priorities

Pope-style advice from the lawn: a firm decision-making tree — Christ follower, husband, father, employer, in that order — with everyone else fifth and below. The hosts confess overcommitment and guilt-driven volunteering, argue emotions can't be trusted for time decisions, cite Matthew 9 ('the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few'), and urge people to steward time by the tree and stop saying yes to everything.

Pope-style advice: true forgiveness vs letting go of emotions

• What is true forgiveness — and is it different from just letting go of the emotions?

A second Pope-style advice session argues society confuses emotional letting-go with biblical forgiveness: true forgiveness absolves the offender of guilt and punishment and never brings it up again (1 Corinthians 13 — 'love keeps no records of wrongs,' an accounting term in Greek). They debate whether God remembers forgiven sin, whether re-confessing a persistent sin accepts Christ's forgiveness, the appeal of keeping a record over someone's head, and the seventy-times-seven command, closing with a joke asking the audience to forgive the show itself.

Closing sponsor spots

The show closes with repeat sponsor spots for Valley Services Cleaning and On Purpose Promotions (OnPurposePromos.com, contact Jared Roy).