September 9, 2013 Podcast

Show open and in-studio introductions

A host opens the show from the Pathway Studios in Johnston. Mike introduces the in-studio lineup: pastor Dan Hudson, guest Rick Gray, John Boova the third (transcript ASR: "Buba"), and an unidentified mystery guest named Troy. Mike admits he is ill prepared for the show, and the group trades opening banter.

Bible-study teaser and opening banter

Mike previews an article about the disconnect between Americans' belief in the Bible and their behavior around it, citing a poll he read. The hosts joke that such survey results are always obvious and say they want the survey job. Banter follows about mispronouncing the website as "livefromthebath.org" and a random thirty-second topic: why morel mushrooms grow only in spring, compared to eggnog and shamrock shakes.

Game setup: Deuteronomy or Dan

Mike launches a new game, "Deuteronomy or Dan," complete with a sung theme song billed as the third-fastest-growing game show on the Internet. The reader explains the rules: he reads a quote and the panel guesses whether it is Old Testament law or something he invented himself. The point is to find out who actually reads the word of God.

Deuteronomy or Dan: the game rounds

The reader works through a series of quotes: the crumbs off the master's table mixed with the dogs-return-to-vomit proverb (Dan's invention), "do not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness" (Exodus 23:1), the bitter root of envy in a neighbor's field (Dan), "do not be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit" (surprisingly Exodus 23:3), the camel relieving itself in the marketplace (Dan), and "all winged insects are unclean" (Deuteronomy 14:19). The panel votes on each round and ribs the reader for pulling quotes from Exodus and Leviticus despite the game's name.

Stubborn son round, locust tangent, game wrap

The final round quotes the stubborn and rebellious son passage: the parents bring him to the elders of the city gate and the men of the city stone him, and the hosts pause over how grim that walk would be. A tangent breaks out over the earlier winged-insects round: if all winged insects are unclean, what about the locusts John the Baptist ate? The chat points to Leviticus 11:22, which explicitly permits locusts, bald locusts, crickets, and grasshoppers. Mike wraps the game and points listeners to past games on the website.

Dateline: America's Bible Hypocrisy

• How do we close the gap between believing the Bible's wisdom and actually living it?

Mike reads an article on the American Bible Society's State of the Bible 2013 study: 66% of Americans say the Bible contains everything needed for a meaningful life, yet 58% say they don't want wisdom and advice from it and 57% read it fewer than five times a year. He adds that 61% wish they read it more, and that 56% say the Bible has too little influence in US society while only 13% say it has too much. The article quotes an ABS spokesman on the gap between believing the Bible is beneficial and opening one's heart, mind, and life to it.

Checkbox Christians and honest witness

The hosts react to the study and say they are unsurprised, calling out "checking the Christian checkbox" — claiming the label while reading the Bible fewer than five times a year. Mike argues the deeper problem is a lack of honest representation: few unbelievers see Christians humbly and honestly living out their faith, so they have no reason to believe it works. One host adds that at some point everyone has been a false witness, so the blame is collective, not aimed at specific people.

Generational bias and cultural cycles

One host observes that the most impressive live-for-Christ people he has known were his grandparents' generation, which had fewer distractions and alternatives. Mike pushes back that this is a cyclical problem, not a new one: Sodom and Gomorrah and Rome show cultures drifting from God and imploding, and America is "the new Rome" heading the same way. He grants the observation but calls it a lame excuse for passivity.

Catalysts for change and hearing God's voice

A host argues people only change when a catalyst hits: his doctor warned him his health would end in death, which pushed him to lose 70 pounds — until the warning faded and the weight crept back. The group recalls previous guest Boss Gujana on hearing God's voice: at a grocery store she reasoned a nudge to pray for a stranger must be God, since neither the devil nor she herself would want it. They conclude change still boils down to personal choice.

A call to boldness

Mike recounts talking with a fellow about reading the Bible, using Boss Gujana's logic: there is nothing in it for him except the man's good, so his persistence itself should get the man's attention. He diagnoses an extreme lack of boldness among Christians: televangelists, ubiquitous Bibles, and podcasts have made evangelism feel like someone else's business, producing soft people who won't stand up for the gospel. His call: say what you know and show the Bible does something, because Jesus "noses into your business" and doesn't give up on people, as with Peter.

Mark 2: the paralytic through the roof

• How bold should Christians be in bringing people to Jesus?

Mike reads Mark 2:1-5, a story he and his daughter read that night: four men carry a paralytic to Jesus, cannot get through the crowd, so they break open the roof and lower him down, and Jesus says, "son, your sins are forgiven." The hosts marvel at the boldness — hauling an immobile man up, breaking a stranger's roof, the awkward silence as debris falls and a man rappels down — and note Jesus never mentions the damage. Mike confesses he chickened out of two witnessing opportunities that week and felt real sorrow over it. The group coins "break a roof" as the rallying cry, with t-shirt and bumper-sticker plans.

Sponsors and show notes

Mike thanks the sponsors: Bob Eisenlauer of the Eisenlauer team, a local real estate man ("easy to work with and hard to beat," transcript: "Eisenhower"), whom he hopes to have on the show, and Westfield Veterinary Hospital in Johnston for his many pets. He recaps the show so far — the Bible article done, the game done — and transitions into Dear LFTP.

Dear LFTP: the coworker who borrows money

• How do I keep a coworker from borrowing money from me?

A listener writes that coworker Anita, whose paycheck arrives a day later, asked for cigarette money, then had the cashier ring up cigarettes on the writer's ATM card during their lunch break. The panel's advice: stand up and say no — Anita is brazen and understands the dynamic well enough to bully the writer. The bold move, they joke-seriously, is to buy the cigarettes, keep them, and go outside to smoke and talk about Jesus: make a friend first, "break the roof." The Secular answer advises telling Anita directly it was rude, or telling the cashier never to allow it again.

Dear LFTP: marry Jordan despite the parents

• Should I marry my boyfriend Jordan when my parents call the idea of marriage stupid — do I have to choose between my parents and my boyfriend?

A 24-year-old college graduate writes that she and her boyfriend Jordan want to marry, but her parents — whose own marriage failed — call her stupid for wanting marriage in 2013. One host's core advice: marriage is not a covenant between you, your spouse, and your parents; go ahead and do it, and the parents will likely come around. The panel diagnoses parental bitterness being painted onto the daughter's life, argues the real problem was a marriage outside of Christ rather than marriage itself, and debates whether the culture's rejection of marriage is a reason to follow or oppose it. The Secular answer: at 24 she is an adult who can make her own decisions; don't let their cynicism taint her.

Closing: break a roof

Mike closes with the episode's takeaway: buy your friend a pack of smokes and talk to him about Jesus — nobody listens to high-and-mighty rebuking; break the roof, make a friend first. He plugs the show on KTIA Saturday nights at 7 and the podcast at livefromthepath.org, and invites listener contact by phone or personal message, offering to share a host's phone number.