March 7 2011

Cold open and studio banter

The show opens with the hosts reacting to a studio light bulb that exploded while being changed, showering glass while the bulb kept glowing. A host introduces himself as Ben Foose and previews the show: a Dear Live from the Path advice segment and a guest visit. Birthdays are acknowledged and the chat is welcomed.

Troy's Colossus sandwich on the Food Network

Troy, back in the studio, recounts being asked by B&B Deli to eat a giant sandwich on the Food Network's Outrageous Foods. He describes the Colossus: four of the deli's signature sandwiches combined, including the Dad's Killer, the Zach's Killer, the Quadzilla Burger, and a jumbo tenderloin. The hosts riff on what an ideal 'Troy killer' sandwich would be and what makes a meat 'Italian.'

Food dares

Prompted by Troy's sandwich feat, the hosts trade food-dare stories: habanero candy snorted, a cat's glaucoma eye offered for $200 by a vet, and peppers eaten on dares in junior high. A listener note from Tim Johnson says he will be praying for a host's soul. The segment ends with a joke pitch to stage a live food dare on the show 'for Jesus.'

Guest intro: Mike Damascus's State House prayer

Pastor Mike Damascus of the Fort Des Moines Church of Christ joins the studio to discuss his prayer before the Iowa State House, which landed on the front page of the Des Moines Register and was picked up by the Chicago Tribune. He explains he was invited by Representative Kim Pearson (sponsored by Representative Glenn Massey), showed up in slacks and a sweater, and was handed a jacket and tie at the door -- his first hint that any guidelines existed.

The State House prayer, read on air

A host reads the full text of Mike Damascus's State House prayer: petitions for humble governance, courage on behalf of the unborn, honor for the institution of marriage, and a closing prayer not to fear how men respond to the truth but how God will, in the name of Jesus Christ.

Aftermath of the prayer

Mike describes Representative Pearson hugging him in tears because the legislature had just caucused on a life bill, and the Secretary of State's chief counsel saying he had never heard a prayer like it in eight years. The hosts discuss how Des Moines Register reporter Jason/Justin Clayworth covered the story, the complaint from Representative Mary Macher of Coralville (who walks out on every prayer), and whether the controversy was contrived by the reporter.

Founding principles vs. other faiths

The hosts debate whether a Christian prayer before the legislature has special standing given the nation's Judeo-Christian founding, versus a Muslim prayer offered two years earlier that ended 'give us victory over the non-believers.' They spar over church/state separation (protection of the church from the state, not vice versa), tradition, and the claim that all faith systems do not have equal standing before God.

What is a public prayer for?

• What is the relevance or purpose of a group opening prayer before a legislative body to begin with?

A host asks what an opening legislative prayer is supposed to accomplish; answers range from the founders' acknowledgment that God is in control to Daniel in the lion's den and the witness of bold prayer. They discuss the State House's restrictive guidelines, a Kiwanis member angered by prayers in Jesus' name, and the Ninth Circuit's 'under God' pledge ruling.

Witnessing vs. proclaiming

The hosts weigh attempting to witness to someone on their level against proclaiming God's word boldly, citing Paul becoming 'all things to all men,' Jude on snatching some from the fire, and Elijah's blunt prayer before Ahab. Mike reports fourteen encouraging phone calls from strangers after the Register article and doubts the reporter did not contrive the Mary Macher complaint.

Comment threads and past front pages

The hosts laugh over the Register comment threads, including a favorite jab calling Mike Damascus an idiot, and note that online commenters are brave behind screens but not face to face. Mike recounts last year's front-page same-sex marriage debate story, the threatened Easter Sunday protest by activists that never materialized, and a church roof project for a needy family that drew cruel comments.

Would you do it again?

• If asked to come back and pray before the legislature, would you do it again?

Asked if he would pray again, Mike says absolutely, while doubting he will be invited back; the hosts joke about guidelines being like jaywalking and joke that he went in 'John the Baptist style.' A running gag has Kyle acting as 'Mr. Damascus's' spokesman enforcing a shirt-jacket-and-tie dress code. The segment closes with thanks to Mike and a break.

Words matter: abortion and marriage

• Should Christians lead with blunt truth-claims, or meet people where their misunderstanding began?

The hosts debate whether blunt terms ('murder' for abortion) persuade or shut people down, agreeing the other side defines the terms -- 'pro-choice,' 'gay marriage,' 'same-sex marriage' -- and Christians lose by accepting them. Mike recounts taking local reporter Dave Price to task over 'narrow definition of marriage' framing. They note most people are misled followers rather than intentional definers.

Media bias and free speech

• Do we believe in free speech for all, or only free speech for the things we agree with?

A host defends NPR against bias claims; Mike counters with NPR's firing of Juan Williams over his Fox News remarks about Muslims on planes. Mike cites Buddy Hanson's The Christian Prince (via Steve Deace): the real divide is God's law vs. man's law, per Romans 1:18 on the suppression of truth. A host presses whether free speech covers speech they disagree with.

Hate crimes, segregation, and foundations

The hosts discuss hate-crimes legislation as Orwellian thought-policing, a florist refusing a same-sex wedding, and whether business owners may choose whom to serve, with segregation invoked as the hard case. They land on the diagnosis that the culture lost its founding understanding of right and wrong by removing God from the public square.

Folgers jingle and Praise 940

The show plays a Folgers jingle submission by Live from the Path artist Vance Lambert and discusses voting for it at Folgers.com. A host announces the show's upcoming slot on Praise 940 (next Sunday at 5 p.m., then the first Sunday monthly), sponsored in part by J.C. Walker of Moving Iowa, and teases Secular vs. Solomon prep with the books of Proverbs.

Dear LFTP: the neighbors' shower window

• Should I tell my neighbors we can see them showering, and how do I do it without embarrassing, shaming, or angering them?

A listener asks whether to tell the neighbors that she and her husband can see everything through the neighbors' large shower window now that they have a young son. The hosts insist the neighbors must know, mock Dear Abby's overly diplomatic note advice (especially the line that it was not a concern 'before your son was born'), and joke about anonymous photo letters and peeping-Tom law.

Dear LFTP: the coughing girl at the play

• What would have been the proper way to handle the girl coughing through the play we paid for?

A listener asks the proper way to handle a girl who coughed through an expensive play, ruining the dialogue. The hosts debate confronting her politely, asking staff to reseat them, or just enduring it; the tangent expands to church etiquette -- crying babies, phone-checking during the service, and one host's 'Jesus' contact with no number saved in his phone.

Public art and the Altoona praying mantis

A host riffs on the Des Moines sculpture garden's rabbit (Donnie Darko vibes) and a 13-foot metal praying mantis spotted on a trailer bound for Altoona, 'behind the Hy-Vee.' The bit spirals into typhus-vs-rickets confusion before the final letter.

Dear LFTP: the cousin's wife Jody

• Would it be tactless or wrong to ask my cousin to leave his wife Jody home from the family gathering?

A listener asks if it would be tactless to ask her cousin to leave his sulking, food-poisoning-feigning wife Jody home from the annual family gathering. The hosts say uninvite them both and expand into parents blind to their own unruly kids. The show closes with thanks to Troy, a tease of Tales from the Path and Non-Biblical Signs of the Apocalypse, and the Praise 940 reminder.