March 24, 2014 Podcast

Show open and intro bits

The produced intro voiceover runs, then a host opens the show from the Pathway studios with a joke intro name and riffs with the other hosts about who might be listening, including an extended back-and-forth about what the 'exact opposite' of making a Christian radio show would be.

Tonight's lineup preview

A host previews the show: Trending with Dan (three news stories), Pope-style advice, a deferred Secular vs. Solomon game, and introduces Story Time, which a host kicks off.

Story Time: the runaway trailer tire

A host tells how his trailer tire fell off on the interstate at highway speed, passed his truck, crossed five lanes and the median, and landed in a ditch; a state patrol officer sent him on his way without a ticket, and the hosts marvel at how nobody was hurt, crediting God's protection. A second, earlier tire-on-its-own story involving the show's intro voiceover man is recounted.

Trending with Dan: woman fakes pregnancy

• How accountable should a person be for their actions if they are legitimately sick?

Dan reads the first trending story: a Canadian woman convinced her boyfriend and town she was pregnant with quintuplets, donations poured in, and doctors later revealed she was never pregnant. The hosts debate a framed multiple-choice question about how accountable a person is for actions taken while legitimately sick, landing on a nuanced answer: own your circumstances and let the community treat you in light of them. Points are awarded.

Trending with Dan: church gives away an AR-15

• How appropriate is it to mix politics and preaching in the church?

Dan reads the second story: Grace Baptist Church in New York gave away an AR-15 rifle during a Sunday service, spending a large portion of its budget on the gun and promotion. The hosts answer whether politics and preaching mix (they pick the option that Scripture covers every aspect of life), joke about the coming Messiah as 'absentee mayor', and riff on a church that used a trampoline to attract visitors, concluding entertainment gimmicks should not replace the mission.

Trending with Dan: Vaseline injections and inner beauty

• What would Jesus say to the person who would do anything to change the way they look?

Dan reads the third story: a 39-year-old Argentine woman died after injecting Vaseline into her breasts to enhance them. Asked what Jesus would say to someone who would do anything to change how they look, the hosts pick the option that God cares more about the beauty radiating from the soul, then discuss how parents counter a culture built on appearance, what Peter says about inner beauty, and whether church trappings like trampolines and gun giveaways are their own superficiality.

Trending with Dan: final scores

Dan tallies the points game: one host finishes well ahead after a five-point answer on the first story, another clawed back from negative one, and the scoring is admitted to be loose and subjective.

Pope-style advice: on giving advice

A host delivers the week's Pope-style advice, framed as wisdom for the 78,000 people gathered on his lawn: when giving advice, take the onus off yourself, point the person to Jesus, and then let it go, because advice from a Jesus perspective is worthless to someone unwilling to submit to that guide. The other hosts agree, adding that evangelism plants seeds, a teacher's example can plant seeds in a secular classroom, and the Christian's responsibility is to point people to Christ, not carry the weight of their choices.

Bible in American life survey

A host walks through a recent survey: nearly 8 in 10 Americans regard the Bible as the literal or inspired word of God, about half read it in the past year, 9% read it daily, the King James is the top translation choice by a wide margin while the NIV has long been the top seller, and scripture memorization is common. The hosts discuss memorizing Proverbs with an accountability partner, trade favorite verses, and a host recounts preaching a sermon on the Bible's 'three sixteens' including Joel 3:16. A mid-segment radio station break is included.

Dear LFTP: the copycat engagement

• Should I say no to a proposal just because it would be a copycat of my boyfriend's best friend's engagement?

A host reads a Dear LFTP letter from New York: a woman dating Caleb for three years fears his proposal will copy best friend AJ's, feeling like an afterthought. The hosts advise her to talk to Caleb directly instead of stewing, call both reactions immature, and say Caleb is likely just a well-meaning follower rather than ill-willed. The 'secular answer' advises she may be happier with someone who is his own man, which the hosts partly agree with while defending Caleb.

Dear LFTP: ADHD medication and skipping lunch

• How should a student on ADHD medication handle teachers and classmates pressuring her to eat at lunch?

A host reads a Dear LFTP letter from a student diagnosed with ADHD whose stimulant medication suppresses appetite at lunch, prompting pressure from teachers and classmates and fear of being mocked. The hosts say to tell the truth plainly, consider bringing a small lunch, doubt classmates can really mock ADHD effectively, and note ADHD's real educational accommodations; they reject the 'secular answer' (tell the principal, keep classmates in the dark) as foolish and say to just live openly.

Dear LFTP: the unpunctual mother-in-law

• How should I kindly handle my mother-in-law's Saturday visits when she won't give an arrival time?

A host reads a Dear LFTP letter from a daughter-in-law whose mother-in-law visits on Saturdays without giving an arrival time, refusing to be 'bound by time.' The hosts advise her to live her day and not wait around: give a window or go about errands, and let the visit happen or not. They reject the 'secular answer' (ask her to call when errands are done) as still leaving the hostage dynamic in place.

Bible quiz: children in the Bible

• Whose daughter died while Jesus was on the way to his house to heal her?
• What young virgin kept the aged king David warm?

The hosts take a 12-question online Bible quiz on children in the Bible (Jairus's daughter, Abishag, Dinah, Amnon, Joash vs. Josiah, the Shunammite child who sneezed seven times, Mephibosheth, the Canaanite woman's daughter, Solomon, Jonathan's arrow, the boy with the loaves and fishes). They score 10 of 12 (84%), missing the Joash-at-seven question and the Jonathan's-arrow question, and plug the quiz site for listeners.

Sign-off and next week

The hosts thank Gregory P. Hudson for stopping by, point listeners to the show's site, and preview next week's in-studio visit from musician Chandra Knudson ahead of her April show at the Mars Cafe.