January 27, 2014 Podcast

Show open from the Pathway Studios

The produced intro plays, then the host opens the live show from the Pathway Studios in Johnston on a cold night. He introduces himself on-air as Ben Foose, 'the double minded man,' jokes that the nickname will never catch on, and previews a packed show: musical guest Chris Akers, an essential-oils-from-the-Bible class recap, a Gospel Coalition article on authenticity vs holiness, and possibly Dear LFTP letters.

Guest Chris Akers introduced; tonight's topics previewed

The hosts introduce guest Chris Akers, who is stopping in to play a couple of tunes. The rundown for the night: 'the trepidatious stepping towards biblical oil use' after one host sat in an essential oils class earlier that day, 'absolute truths about life' that mostly aren't true, a Gospel Coalition article titled 'Has Authenticity Trumped Holiness?', pope-style advice, and possibly Dear LFTP letters from listeners who need help.

Guest performs 'Look In Your Eyes'

Chris Akers introduces his newest song, 'Look In Your Eyes,' written from the ache of feeling distant from God - 'I see so many blessings from the Lord in my life... I wish I could see God. I wish I could look in his eyes.' He performs it live in the studio (the song goes online about two days later; a full-band version is planned). The hosts praise the honest songwriting and how the song names the hunger to feel God's tangible presence, 'a hand on my back.'

Recap: essential oils from the Bible class

A host recounts attending an 'essential oils from the Bible' class that evening. The class tied product oils to Bible references: cleansing with hyssop, the Passover blood applied with a hyssop branch, frankincense and myrrh as anointing oils, and the temple incense formula - which, per Exodus, must not be replicated, so one company intentionally withholds an ingredient. He finds it interesting and would go again, but cautions against attaching Jesus' blessing to a product line: 'why don't you just call it Jesus' favorite and sell it to me for $85?'

Sponsors: Eisenlauer team and pet care; site promo

Reads for the show's sponsors: the Eisenlauer team (Bob Eisenlauer, real estate - jokingly pitched as 'Eisenhower for mayor' with a demand to buy the domain first) and a full-service pet care hospital, plus a plug for livefromthepath.org, where Chris Akers' performances will be posted for the week.

Discussion: has authenticity trumped holiness?

• Has authenticity trumped holiness in evangelical culture?
• What is hypocrisy - failing to live by what I feel, or failing to live by what I believe?

The hosts read and discuss a Gospel Coalition article asking whether evangelical culture has made 'being screwed up' a badge of honor - 'works righteousness' in reverse - so that authenticity outranks holiness. They work through the article's redefinition of hypocrisy (living out of conformity with what you believe is hypocrisy; living your beliefs in spite of your feelings is integrity, not hypocrisy), warn against lowering the bar to dodge the hypocrite label, discuss the fear that anything resembling good works is 'trying to save yourself,' note that Jesus' sermon instructions on joy are direct and applicable, and frame the kingdom of God as bigger than a salvation-only story: 'don't stop living the story.' One host admits the conversation convicts him.

Guest performs 'I Choose Forever'

Chris Akers introduces 'I Choose Forever,' written for his parents' thirty years of marriage and drawn from things his father vowed to his mother on their wedding day - 'a kiss for your forehead every night.' He performs it live in the studio. Afterward the hosts react warmly, Chris's music and Facebook page are plugged, and there is banter about the spelling of his last name (A-K-E-R-S, Norwegian) versus 'Acres.'

Pope-style advice: trust in God when teaching

• How can a new believer trust God when asked to teach Scripture despite fear of getting it wrong?

A host delivers pope-style advice, framed by the running gag that crowds gather on his front lawn 'like the pope' demanding counsel. About two and a half years into following Christ, he was asked to teach a chapter of Luke to youth and froze with anxiety about misinterpreting Scripture - then discovered his passage was Luke 12's 'do not be anxious,' including the promise that the Holy Spirit will teach believers what to say when brought before authorities. The advice: trust in God, especially to speak through you. The hosts riff on the 'hyssop branch' threat as a running joke.

Dear LFTP: how to host visiting parents

• When distant parents visit their adult children, to what extent should they be treated as guests?

A listener asks: when parents who live many miles away visit their adult children, to what extent should they be treated as guests - especially when the kids help themselves and never offer? The hosts lean informal: parents are family, not guests, and would be expected to know where the fridge is. One host counters with the prodigal son's father throwing the robe around the returning son, arguing for extravagant welcome; another replies the parable is being force-fit ('an acre set') and the real issue may be generational - the parents wanting to feel known. Consensus: be hospitable, don't treat informality as a slight - and speak up if you're hungry.

KTIA radio sign-off before the final song

The hosts note the show airs at 10 PM with a Saturday 7 AM rebroadcast on 99.3 KTIA, then send the radio audience out with one more song from Chris Akers as the podcast continues.

Guest performs a song about trusting God in a move

Chris Akers performs a slow song (lyrics include 'a cup of stars' and 'will you stay here with me when I leave the coast'). Afterward he explains it is an honest prayer about trusting God: he had moved to Iowa the previous August from Washington state - having never heard of Ames - to play and lead worship at First Evangelical Free Church in Ames.

Evaluating '37 life lessons' from the Huffington Post

In podcast-only territory, the hosts run through a Huffington Post list of '37 life lessons I learned so far,' testing each against biblical truth. They push back on 'happiness comes from within' ('go upward, not inward'), 'the world is our mirror,' and 'everybody comes into our life for a reason' (a burglar stealing a TV is 'a jerk,' not a lesson - though God can work sin for good); they accept 'hurt people hurt people' ('love them anyway - from 10 feet back with a hyssop branch') and 'let those you love know it.' The segment ends with banter about the prodigal son and the coining of the 'acre set' gag.

Dear LFTP: a mother's disappointment in her adult daughters

• How should a disappointed mother respond to her adult daughters' life choices?

A listener writes that her younger daughter has been dating a marijuana-smoking young man for less than a year, and her older daughter already has two children by two men; she is disgusted by their choices and adds, defensively, that she adopted them - 'I'm not a harlot.' The hosts push back on the judgmental, reputation-protecting framing: the decisions are already made and she can't change them, but backing off judgment doesn't mean checking out - she should stay present, love them, interject Jesus and grace, and aim at repentance without self-protection. One host: 'I'm King David style - I'll make a fool of myself if I think it will help my children.' The show's 'secular advice' counterpoint says to say nothing while angry but to text asking how she and John plan to support the baby.

'Weight of Hope' performance and sign-off

Chris Akers performs one last song, 'Weight of Hope' ('Today, compassion won out... Today, you tore the curtain down'), introduced as the high-energy closer, available on his website. The hosts thank him for coming on the show and sign off for the week.