Jehosaphat Wasn't Really a Jumper

Show open and guest introduction

The hosts open the show on Des Moines Amplified and livefromthepath.org. Mike DeMastis is introduced in studio as a guest; the hosts note that co-host Dan Hudson is absent, attending a pastors' conference in Colorado.

License plates, Jesus fish, and the drive in

Opening banter covers license-plate sticker etiquette ('license plate bingo'), then a host's moral dilemma: anger at a slow driver in a 30-mph zone collides with the driver's Jesus fish on the back of the car. The guest's moped enters the conversation as the talk turns to his 85-mpg commute.

Meet Mike DeMastis, pastor of the Fort

Guest Mike DeMastis introduces himself as pastor of Fort Des Moines Church of Christ ('the fort'), where he has served nearly 12 years. He recounts his first pastorate at Putnam Christian Church in rural Illinois, including board meetings where farmers arrived on tractors with wagons behind them.

Real Men of Faith conference recap

The hosts and guest recap the Real Men of Faith conference, where the hosts' worship band played, and discuss its challenge to biblical manhood and men's responsibilities to family and God. They announce a repeat conference in February at Rising Sun Church of Christ near Pleasant Hill, with confirmed speakers Jan Michelson and Fred Stoker, co-author of Every Man's Battle.

Doulas, forgotten phones, and one pair of pants

Casual studio chat: the guest's wife is a doula who could be called out after the show, the hosts realize they both left their phones behind, and a host explains his single-pair-of-pants wardrobe system after a pre-show walk forced a change into shorts.

Spirit Midwest Music Festival recap

The hosts recap the free Spirit Midwest music festival organized by Julie and Al Barnes. Bands from the show performed (Certainty, Next Crossing, Vance Lambert, Tim Cooper and friends); the hosts' between-band stage banter was completely ignored, and they note disappointment at low turnout at the prayer tent.

Whose authority declares the Bible inspired?

• Does the Bible need an outside authority (the Church) to declare it inspired, or does it attest itself?

The hosts discuss guest Mike DeMastis's blog post about the inspiration of Scripture, prompted by a Twitter exchange with a Roman Catholic man who argued the Bible cannot attest its own inspiration and needs the Church to declare it. The table debates self-attestation versus outside authority, citing 2 Timothy 3:16 and 2 Peter 1:21, with a running business-card gag about identity verification.

Favorite blogs and social-media narcissism

The conversation turns to favorite blogs (John Acuff, Perry Noble) and a teaser for next week's topic on 'what is and is not the church' drawn from an Acuff comment thread. The hosts debate whether social media is inherently narcissistic or a neutral tool that can be leveraged for God's glory.

Troy the Situation joins; the moped saga

Guest Troy Engeldinger arrives and is dubbed 'Troy the Situation.' Banter covers texting while driving, naming vehicles (a truck called Babe, a GPS named Elaine after a host's wife), and the guest pastor's sabbatical video gag where he appears to mount a Harley but rides off on his moped, plus mock outrage at Harley riders who won't return the wave.

Life-size chess and Trash Day treasures

• Have you ever broken something and tried to rig a fix for it?
• Did you ever do something as a kid that you thought you'd never get back in your mom's good graces for?

A comedy bit about human-size chess pieces gives way to Troy's Trash Day stories: a gaming computer, a Naked Gun 2 1/2 illuminated poster, a 32-inch TV found at a sheriff's house in Altoona that took hours to warm up, and the sled shovel that replaced the one he lost as a kid.

Thrown through the wall

Asked whether he ever did something he thought he would never live down with his mom, guest Troy Engeldinger tells the story of throwing his brother Trey through a bedroom wall at 16, then spending hours covering the hole with duct tape and spray paint before their parents came home. The hosts rate the story on funny/not-funny scales.

On the lam and 'Berating and Abetting'

Sparked by a news story about escaped convicts, the hosts debate whether they could survive on the lam and look up the dictionary definition of 'abetting.' The segment lands on a proposed show title, 'Berating and Abetting,' and a hypothetical about hiding the moped-riding pastor from the law for reading the New Testament in a bright shirt.

Selling religion: Christian TV and Jesus junk

• Why is the nation less Christian despite having more Christian resources than ever?

The hosts critique low-effort Christian television and the markup economy of Christian bookstores ('an outline of Jesus on a bookmark and they want 15 bucks'). They draw a thin line for anyone in the business of God: money plus the Lord's name demands a close relationship with Him, or it tarnishes every Christian's name.

'I like Jesus but not the church'

• Can you keep a relationship with Christ while distancing yourself from the church?
• Can two Christians disagree sharply and still serve God's mission?

The hosts push back on distancing from the church while claiming Christ, comparing it to insulting a man's bride: the church is Christ's bride. They discuss a Naperville church's 'Christian vs. Christ follower' videos, the emergent church movement, and how Paul and Barnabas split over John Mark yet God's mission advanced anyway, citing Philippians 1:15-18.

The job of your soul is yours

• Is it the church's job to feed me spiritually?

A host argues that after about two years as a believer, feeding yourself spiritually is your job, not the church's: if you're not getting fed, it's because you aren't eating. Growth requires being in the Word daily and around Christians, not just Sunday attendance.

Pastor stereotypes and the leprosy reaction

Mike DeMastis describes the 'principal's office syndrome' that follows admitting you're a pastor. The table trades stereotypes -- a Southern Baptist grandfather who only listened to talk radio, pastors' radios forbidden from playing fun music -- and lands on the idea that Christians should be beaming, not burdened.

P-Naps: the men's hygiene invention

A host pitches 'P-Naps,' a men's hygiene product inspired by feminine-hygiene commercials, complete with a urinal commercial sketch, a cheesy P-Naps rapper spokesman, and riffs on Cialis bathtub ads and Depends. The bit snowballs into a group Depends-wearing challenge.

Respect, titles, and how we address God

After a break bumper, the hosts discuss teaching kids respectful titles (Mr., Mrs., Pastor) and what titles like 'pastor' really mean. Mike DeMastis explains his 'Master Pastor' blog title came from his kids' Xbox gamertag, then argues how we refer to God reveals how well we know Him -- illustrated by a pastor who prayed 'daddy God.' The segment closes with his Bible-college story of Wayne Shaw of Lincoln Christian College, who cried in every sermon while students timed it.

Sermon slip-ups and the mulligan

The table trades preaching bloopers: an Assemblies of God preacher in Kewanee, Illinois who meant 'I have hope in my soul and it's burning' but said 'I have soap in my hole and it's burning.' They joke about sermon mulligans and relay a Bible-college preaching professor's advice: if words slip out wrong, keep trucking -- the audience will convince itself it didn't hear it.

Which Jesus are you? Vintage videos and offense

The hosts discuss Luke 15 and the Pharisees who 'muttered' at Jesus eating with sinners, then defend the much-panned 'Vintage Jesus' videos from Vintage Church: the Hollywood image of Jesus is a fake Jesus, so exaggerating it can't misrepresent Him, and taking offense on His behalf misses the point.

Paintings of Jesus, superstitions, and 'nothing sacred'

The hosts mock glowing-Jesus art and ask whether believers worship a relationship with the living God or protect religious images and objects. They admit their own superstitions (communion tables, coffee cups on Bibles), recall dropping the cross from the LFTP logo, and warn that facility spending and 'light cannons' can become subtle distractions from the true thing.

Outro and next-week teaser

The show closes with thanks and logistics (livefromthepath.org, podcast, YouTube). Next week: more on the church, including the author who walked away from it ('Rice, Rice, Rice' -- Anne Rice). They sign off thanking guests Troy 'the Situation' Engeldinger and Mike DeMastis, with Fort Des Moines Church of Christ contact info (godsfort.org) and the 'Master Pastor Blaster' blog.