February 25, 2013 Podcast

Show open and tonight's lineup

A host opens the show from the Pathway Studios in Johnston, welcomes a full studio including guest band Righteous Vendetta, and previews the night: an interview with the band, proof 37 (DNA) from the '50 proofs that God is imaginary' series, the Secular vs. Solomon game, and advice letters. Boova is addressed by name and refuses to leave the studio.

Host banter: two personal regrets

Comedy banter where a host shares two personal regrets: he has broken all but one of the four buttons on his pants (held together by a belt), and he cut all his fingernails except one, leaving one long claw nail he is gnawing off. The other hosts riff on the situation, including one host's story of cable-tying his good pants shut before a daddy-daughter dance.

Interview part 1: Righteous Vendetta band intro, tour, new album, listening habits

First half of the in-studio interview with guest band Righteous Vendetta. They discuss their just-started tour (Denver living-room practice, Grand Island Nebraska, Osceola), a completed new album that is lighter and more anthemic/radio-format than their earlier heavy sound because they want to reach more people with Jesus, and what each member is listening to (Love and Death/Brian 'Head' Welch, Ellie Goulding, country artists, Hands, Ascend the Hill, Spoken, Tidal Fight, Refuge). Ends with plugs for righteousvendetta.com and Facebook.

Fifty proofs, proof 37: DNA as evidence of a creator

• Does the existence and information content of DNA prove that God is imaginary?

The hosts work through proof 37 from GodIsImaginary.com, which argues DNA's information content does not prove a creator because evolution/natural selection produced it. Read aloud in full, then rebutted: consensus doesn't equal truth, and non-intelligence can't produce intelligence ('non-intelligence doesn't produce intelligence'). A host notes you can have a healthy debate and love Jesus on peripheral questions, and that most Christ-followers ground their faith in relationship, not DNA — capped with the line that if a man dies and comes back three days later, you take him at his word regardless of his DNA. The segment closes with an evolution riff about giraffe necks, wheels for feet, and Pokemon.

Teaser: proof 38 on the Christian divorce rate

• Does the divorce rate among Christians prove that God is imaginary?

A host previews next week's proof 38 from GodIsImaginary.com — the argument that the high divorce rate among Christians proves God is imaginary — reading the opening salvo including the Matthew 5:32 divorce reference. No rebuttal is given; it is held for next week. The hosts also pause to state why they do the proofs series: to be ready with a defense for their faith (a '1 Peter thing'), not to attack the site's author.

Sponsor reads and show plugs

Sponsor segment naming the Eisenhower Team realtors, Valley Services cleaning, Capana's Coffee and Gelato on Lincoln Way in Ames, and On Purpose Promotions (Jared). A host explains they bought Facebook likes with a $50 ad credit and admits creating alter-ego accounts to like the show's page. Includes broadcast schedule plugs (livefromthepath.org Monday nights, 99.3 KTAA Saturdays) and a lead-in to Secular vs. Solomon.

Secular vs. Solomon game show

The hosts play 'Secular vs. Solomon' with Righteous Vendetta: a host reads a proverb and players must say whether it is a secular (world) proverb with its country of origin, or from Solomon/biblical wisdom. Rounds include 'A drowning man is not troubled by rain' (Persia/Iran), 'A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech' (Solomon), 'Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so was the sluggard to those who send him' (Solomon, Proverbs 10:26), 'Put silk on a goat, and it's still a goat' (Ireland), 'Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse' (Solomon, Proverbs 9:7), 'Give neither counsel nor salt till you are asked for it' (Italy), 'Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in abundance of counselors, there is safety' (Solomon, Proverbs 11), and 'If God lived on earth, people would break his windows' (secular Jewish proverb). Running jokes include Hudson's NIV/ESV translation excuses, sluggard being a giveaway word for Solomon, and Hudson's invented country origins (Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Gaza).

Interview part 2: tour downtime, impressions, studio stories

Second half of the Righteous Vendetta interview. The band describes tour downtime (audio Bible app Bible.is, video games, guitar, sleep, Mountain Dew Game Fuel), one member's bad stuttering impression of Isaiah complaining about only playing drums two days in a 13-day studio session, and stories of being heckled about nationalities. A host plugs righteousvendetta.com and Facebook again before moving to the advice letters.

Dear LFTP: boyfriend Richard takes his frustrations out on the letter-writer

• My boyfriend Richard takes his frustrations out on me and refuses counseling — what do I do?

Advice letter from a woman in a 14-year on-and-off, now long-distance relationship with 'Richard,' who picks fights over inconsequential things (e.g., his missing dog, her mentioning nice weather) and refuses counseling. The hosts' advice: get counseling yourself, but the relationship should end — he's not marriage material right now, and you can't mold someone into what they aren't. The secular answer is read afterward: the problem is she tolerates the emotional abuse, shaped by her alcoholic mother's unpredictable behavior; its closing advice to keep the romance long-distance is mocked as terrible.

Dear LFTP: friend introduces her as 'just a receptionist'

• Am I being petty or vainly pretentious for feeling demeaned when my friend introduces me as 'just a receptionist'?

Advice letter from a retired, community-active woman whose longtime friend repeatedly introduces her as 'just a receptionist' while elevating her own secretary title. The hosts debate whether it's a pride issue versus a legitimate grievance, note the word 'just' implies lower worth, and land on identity: Christ defines her worth, not a job title or a friend's opinion. The secular answer says the friend is insecure and should be told to cut it out or the friendship ends.

Friendship advice follow-up and role-play comedy bit

Follow-up discussion on whether to end a friendship over the 'just a secretary' insult — consensus: talk to the person rather than risk the friendship, and don't let one person's opinion define you. Turns into a comedy role-play bit where two hosts act out the confrontation ('he's just a secretary' vs. the hurt friend), landing on the resolution 'this is my friend — define yourself however you choose.'

Dear LFTP: why pass on books you didn't enjoy

• Why would you pass on books to a friend that you did not enjoy reading?

Advice letter asking why a friend would give away books she didn't like. The hosts agree it's fine — one man's trash is another's treasure — and the bit expands into stories of awkward gifts received and given: a Financial Peace University book from a grandmother, life planners and diet books, Chuck Colson books handed to a pastor, one host's childhood gift of disposable razors and shaving cream to his dad, and another host's unwatched Sopranos Scene It DVD found still wrapped when his father passed.

Show close: Indianapolis plug and sign-off

Closing segment: Righteous Vendetta's next show is at The Gear in Indianapolis, thank-yous to the band and sponsors, and the sign-off for next week.