January 14 2013

The show opens with the 'Johnston proper' tagline

The show opens live from the Pathway Studios in Johnston proper, followed by a bit riffing on why 'Johnston proper' sounds cooler than plain 'Johnston'. The hosts joke about bailing on the show if it doesn't go well.

The daughters' pre-show studio takeover

A host explains that he and Ben brought their little girls (each has two) into the studio before the show so they could see what the dads do at the 'radio show'. Ben set ground rules, the girls got their own mics, bathroom humor and 'stinky grandmas' ensued, and a couple of Jesus questions got 'John the Baptizer' and 'Jesus was born'. The hosts are worn out and count on the rest of the crew to carry the show.

Show rundown, sponsors, and Bob Eisenlauer in studio

The hosts run the rundown for the live audience on 99.3 KTIA and livefromthepath.org: proof 31 from godisimaginary.com ('understand that religion is superstition'), a husbands' marriage tip (get a part-time job), free advice, and the Secular vs. Solomon game. Sponsors read: Valley Services, Capona's Coffee in Ames, On Purpose Promotions. Bob Eisenlauer is back in the studio; shout-outs to listeners Pete and Scott. A dad question from a fellow Christian dad is promised for the tail of the show.

Proof 31 read-through: 'Understand that religion is superstition'

• If God answers trivial prayers, why does he not stop massive evils like murder, rape, and starvation?

The host reads proof 31 from godisimaginary.com aloud: the Pasadena housewife who believes God removed a mustard stain versus the world's unanswered suffering, a long checklist of trivial prayers, and the summation that prayer is ranked superstition no different from crystal balls or lucky rabbit's feet — therefore God is imaginary.

Responding to proof 31: free will, and does prayer move the hand of God?

• Can our prayers change what God does — do they move the hand of God?

The hosts dismantle the proof's false premises: God gave free will, and we can't count the evils he prevented. Bob Eisenlauer notes each proof is 90% garbage with a gem or two of real discussion. Bob poses the honest question — praying for his grandma in hospice, do our prayers change anything? The hosts answer from Moses interceding for Israel, the prayers of the saints as incense in Revelation, and Jesus' teaching that earthly fathers give good gifts. They frame prayer as relationship, not just requests — conversational thanks, catharsis, being bent toward God's will — and picture Gethsemane's answer as 'I can't do that, son,' grounded in God's bigger perspective and absolute morality. The proof gets a 'mulligan' and is granted no victory.

Next week: proof 32, 'Talk to a theologian' — and how the series started

• Who wrote the godisimaginary.com proofs, and why did the show start covering them?

The hosts preview proof 32 ('Talk to a Theologian'), one host shares irritation at internet apologetics theologians who miss the heart of Jesus, and Bob Eisenlauer asks who wrote godisimaginary.com (suspected: Marshall Brain of HowStuffWorks). They recount how the series started — failing at their own content ideas, so they argue with people who disagree — note one host checked out around week 15, and joke about running out of content at 50. Double J and Cass Lester are announced for next week, with poker-tell banter.

The cover-charge party debate

• Is it acceptable etiquette to charge guests $10-$20 at the door of a private party?

A host recounts a friend's party with a $10 donation request for hors d'oeuvres plus another $10 for drinks, announced the day before. The crew debates the etiquette: the principle of the matter, whether an honest after-the-fact invoice would feel different, the value proposition (Long John's for five bucks), and the joke that a $10 cover is 'the foos filter'. They imagine Troy throwing a free party (kazoos and cheap Oreos) versus Bob throwing a $10-a-head party (catered Long John's).

Secular vs. Solomon game night

America's fastest-growing internet game show: the host reads proverbs and the players guess secular (naming a country of origin) or Solomon. All five opening rounds are Solomon — Ecclesiastes 6, Ecclesiastes 7:5, Ecclesiastes 9, Ecclesiastes 10, and Proverbs 4:23 — and the players go nearly all secular in a four-way fail ('Put down the chicken legs, boys. Pick up a Bible.'). Secular rounds follow: a Burundi proverb (sparking a discussion of sponsored water children, giving to Guatemala and Afghanistan, and renaming Nyakawazira 'Neo'), a Yemeni proverb, a Danish bird proverb, an Italian donkey proverb, and a Mongolian donkey proverb. The radio audience is signed off and the chat audience continues.

The read-the-Bible-in-a-year comedy bit

• Do you read through the entire Bible in a year?

A host jokes that to be a real Christian you must read through the entire Bible every year, blaming pamphlets that are really selling Bibles. This spirals into the offshoot-of-the-Gideons bit: a former Gideon named 'New International' who split off to sell his own version, closing with 'His name was Giddy Up.'

The marriage tip: get a part-time job

• Will treating time at home like a part-time job save or strengthen a husband's marriage?

The hosts walk through an article by Eric Raymond: husbands should approach time at home with the same intentional engagement as work — 'we don't want your leftovers.' They agree the job isn't the point; the point is priorities (Christ, wife, kids, then job), being more polite to strangers than to one's own wife, and not dumping the load. They note how critical the early years are, cite a statistic on post-divorce poverty, and observe Paul's case for singleness: you don't have to take on marriage, but if you do, you carry it.

Show close and thanks to Bob Eisenlauer

Sign-off: catch the show Monday nights at livefromthepath.org and Saturdays on 99.3 KTIA, revisit clips and play Secular vs. Solomon post-mortem, and support the sponsors. The hosts thank guest Bob Eisenlauer for coming in and plug his real-estate work ('he sells one mean house').