Following the News

Show open — back after a month off

The hosts open the show from the Pathway Studios in Johnston and apologize for a nearly month-long sabbatical from recording. One host recounts a child asking whether he really has to go to the show that night. The hosts present on the audio are Ben, Dan, and Mike, all addressed by name; a third regular is absent.

Show roadmap and the 'trip and fall into holy' pastor-failure talk

• When pastors fall into sexual sin, what does living so that 'even a trip lands somewhere holy' mean?

The hosts outline the episode: a Secular vs. Solomon game plus rapid-fire news stories, with a rule that thin stories get dropped after one sentence. This recalls a pre-show conversation about a recent rash of pastors falling to affairs and sexual misconduct: one host argues a pastor should live so far from those sins that even a stumble would land him in something holy — 'if you're gonna trip, you should fall into holy' — and the hollow excuses ('I had misjudgments') signal the men were already near the sin.

Reaction to Trump's vulgar comments about other countries

• How should Christians react to the president's vulgar language about other countries?

The hosts react to news that President Trump called some countries 'assholes' (the reported 'shithole countries' remark). One host argues the false outrage is misplaced — most people in Washington use such language privately — but as the country's representative Trump should be 'decent and not depraved': you do not insult the neighbor at the block party even if you dislike him. Another host notes adoptive and mission families flummoxed by the remarks are putting Trump on a pedestal he never earned, and warns against giving weight in your life to what the president thinks. Discussion closes on media standards for printing the profanity and the FCC's decency role.

New Year's resolutions

• Do the hosts have any New Year's resolutions?

Asked for resolutions, the hosts trade theirs: no personal gas-station stops or lunches out (packed lunches, brought-from-home soda), a jokey 'continue Adonis-ing' fitness goal, and a morning routine of boiled lemon water that accidentally produced consistent morning Bible reading. One host joins a read-the-Bible-in-a-year plan with a group and resolves to wake up earlier. Dan is addressed by name and answers at length.

Do we misunderstand 'unreached people'?

• Is redefining 'unreached people' to include our neighbors hampering international missions?

The hosts discuss a Christian Post article reporting that mission alliances worry Christians now define 'unreached' as their unbelieving neighbor, which — the article claims — is hampering funding for truly unreached people groups (tribes in Sudan, Malawi, the pygmies). One host pushes back, calling it a current problem but disagreeing with the framing; the hosts converge on 'yes and yes': the neighbor is unreached and so are the distant tribes, citing the call to be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. They add that long-range missions work best by building local infrastructure — churches that operate apart from the missionary's presence, as Paul did in Ephesus.

Andy Savage allegations and whether he should stay in ministry

• Should Andy Savage remain in ministry after the twenty-year-old sexual misconduct allegation, and was the applauding church right?

The hosts cover the allegations against Andy Savage, teaching pastor at High Point Church in Memphis: that twenty years earlier, as a 22-year-old youth pastor in Texas, he coerced 17-year-old Jules Woodson into oral sex, apologized, and had the church instruct her to keep quiet; he later told the story as a sermon illustration and the congregation applauded, drawing backlash in the Me Too moment. The hosts agree God's forgiveness is real but say hiding it for twenty years and telling half-truths disqualifies him from the pastorate — grace warming a person produces unprompted apologies, and he could serve Jesus in many ways other than the stage. They also note he broke the 'cardinal rule of illustration': the illustration became bigger than the sermon.

Secular vs. Solomon game show

The hosts play 'Secular or Solomon,' billed as America's fastest-growing internet game show: the quizmaster reads bits of wisdom and the players must say whether each is a secular proverb (naming a country of origin) or biblical wisdom from Solomon. Rounds include the Welsh spoon-and-soup proverb, 'whoever pampers his servant from childhood will in the end find him his heir' (Solomon, Proverbs 29), 'whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence' (Solomon, Proverbs 26) which spawns a running 'cup of violence' joke, the Thai fish-and-ants proverb, 'no matter how hard you try, the bull will never give milk' (secular Ukraine), 'better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite' (Solomon, Ecclesiastes 6:9), 'the highway of the upright turns aside from evil' (Solomon, Proverbs 16:17), the Danish pig-and-child proverb, the Ukrainian church-is-near proverb, and 'better was a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king' (Solomon, Ecclesiastes 4). Dan wins 74 to 30. The absent third co-host ('booba') is missed; the players struggle to track turns with only two.

Dear LFTP — the estate sale jacket search

• Should we have said something when an estate sale rep searched an older woman's jacket?

A listener writes that at an estate sale, a sales representative asked an older woman if she could afford an item, then asked to search her jacket pockets (finding nothing) and said 'you know how it is.' The hosts and the secular advice columnist agree the letter writers were wise not to intervene as third parties — but the hosts are skeptical of the rep's suspicion and joke about dress-down wealthy shoppers and Sam Walton's beat-up pickup. The question about whether one should 'step up to the plate' is set aside as a phrase they dislike.

Dear LFTP — the kid forced to work the family store

• My parents make me work in their store for free — what should I do?

A young listener writes that six months ago his parents opened a store and now make him work weekends and after school until 6pm, unpaid and strict; he wants out but fears punishment. The hosts answer with the 'suck it up, buttercup' line — historically kids worked the family business — then advise testing limits: roll the dice, tell them, and see what the punishment actually is ('everybody can make a deal with making dad mad'). The secular answer urges less resentment and pride in contributing. This prompts a running gag about one host's daughter Grace, who complained 'if I don't agree with you when you're saying something to me, then I have to agree with you no matter what you say,' and a digression against the phrase 'step up to the plate' as praise for merely doing one's job.

Dear LFTP — the insecure sixteen-year-old

• I'm a deeply insecure 16-year-old with no real friends — please help.

A 16-year-old girl writes a long letter: she feels she is the most insecure person on the planet, believes her friends don't care about her, has distanced herself until she is socially deprived, was left uninvited to every 16 party, and traces much of the 'no one likes you' paranoia to her parents telling her that when she was young; her only real friends are online. The hosts answer earnestly: take social risks, ignore some rejection, stop hiding behind the computer screen, re-engage people since her withdrawal is a choice she can reverse, ground her identity in a relationship with Jesus rather than others' opinions, and recognize isolation distorts her perception of reality. They push back on the secular columnist's answer, which called the girl a victim of verbal abuse and recommended professional counseling: they don't oppose counseling, but say true encouragement should also empower her to act now.

Sign-off

The hosts close the episode and tease next week's show. One host delivers the standing sign-off: 'be faithful in the means. God will handle the ends.'