$20 and a Dilly Bar

Show open and docket

A host opens the show from the Pathway Studios in Johnston proper and sets the docket: an Ephesians 5 article on husband-wife submission, a Chris Lowen column asking whether Christians should be 'proud to be a biblical Christian,' and Dear LFTP advice letters. A comedy bit about AI-generated social-media post descriptions stuffed with emojis and an AI-plagiarism riff lead into the articles.

One-in-four statistic, identity phases, and smoking stories

Ben reads the opening of an article claiming a public-school child now has a one-in-four chance of declaring an LGBTQ identity before the end of high school, and the hosts debate whether that figure reflects permanent identity or a phase — Mike recalls believing he could become Wolverine at 13. The block turns into personal stories about teenage identity and smoking: Boova tells of taking up smoking in sixth grade to impress an older girl, Mike of smoking at 18 to avoid talking to people at bars, and the room jokes that the smoker's mentality is being willing to 'buy a friend for a stick.'

Ephesians 5: mutual submission, not a proof-text for power

• What does Ephesians 5 really teach about husband-wife submission?

Ben reads a Christian Post article arguing that Ephesians 5:22 has no verb in the earliest manuscripts — 'wives to your own husbands' continues the sentence begun at 5:18 and broken by a paragraph mark — so the passage teaches mutual submission of all believers, not a standalone command wives must obey. Mike reads the ESV passage aloud from 5:18 through the headship analogy, and the hosts agree the 'wives and husbands' heading makes it look like a new thought when it belongs to the Spirit-filled mutual-submission section. The application: husbands are told to love sacrificially because men tend to stink at that, and reaching for the passage to assert authority is lazy — 'that would be like deifying husbands.'

Proud to be a biblical Christian? Actually read the Bible

• Should Christians be proud to be 'biblical Christians' when half have never read the whole Bible?
• Does faithful Bible reading protect against false teaching?

Ben walks through Chris Lowen's Instagram poll: 75% said it is important to be a biblical Christian and 87% said it is important to challenge unbiblical leaders, yet only 51% had read the whole Bible — plus LifeWay's finding that 32% of churchgoers have read it cover to cover and 9% read daily. The hosts argue faithful Bible reading protects against predatory teaching (the Hillsong/prosperity-gospel preview example: 'treat your Bible as your hometown pastor') and that 'I'm doing the best I can' is a lie when the issue is priority, illustrated by the Dilly Bars bit — Mike would be in the basement at 6:25 every morning for Dilly Bars and $15. Boova shares a low point where lies about God being disappointed in him crept in until he was reminded of truth from Jude — 'you're called, beloved, and kept' — and Mike and Boova describe their recent accountability thread of texting each other when they read Scripture.

Amazon at 4 a.m. and when you feel old

A short comedy stretch: Dan tells of an Amazon delivery arriving at 4 a.m. and waking the dog, prompting a riff on early-morning contracted drivers, then a host asks the room when they felt they got old — Boova answers with his recent fury over the price of a cold cup of coffee at Caribou, which sets up the next block.

Socially awkward hills to die on: the $5.55 cold brew and the phone-number refusal

• What socially awkward behaviors do you insist on even though most people find them odd?

Boova tells the Caribou Coffee story in full: asked for a black iced coffee, steered to a $5.55 cold brew, refused on principle and drove away — 'you ain't gonna catch boob a penny $5.55 for no cold brew coffee.' The room's question: what socially awkward behaviors do you insist on? Ben's is refusing to give his phone number at Bass Pro Shops and Harbor Freight ('I guess I won't return them'), Dan's is walking past the Costco AT&T sellers without lying, and Mike tells his hotel vacation-pitch confrontation — 'give me my 200 points or give me your full name' — plus a car-shopping blowup. Boova closes by praising Mike's brand of social confrontation as 'like watching a National Geographic' moment. The complaint line number is given for listener stories.

Fish texts, Dallas Jenkins, and wrong-number friends

• Is it too late to respond to the fish-text man's birthday text?

Mike tells of getting Dallas Jenkins's Chosen text messages and answering 'stop texting me, Dallas,' and Ben asks for advice about an older man who texted him fish-catch photos and then a 'happy birthday' — the verdict is just say thanks. Mike's wrong-number story (a California woman's kid photos, 'this is Mike,' the texts stop) and Ben's wrong-number story ('hey, Kate, my name's Troy, I'm not actually Alex') round out a block on missed connections and whether to keep texting strangers who have the wrong number.

Dear LFTP: the in-laws who need a hotel, and 'it's not anxiety, it's arrogance'

• Am I unreasonable for making my disrespectful in-laws stay in a hotel?

Mike reads a letter from a woman whose disrespectful in-laws stay with them when they visit; since her son was born she told her husband they need a hotel, but they complain about cost and her mother-in-law wants to buy a sleep sofa. The hosts back the boundary — the husband is 'a bit of a weak liver puffball' for not believing what happens when he is not around — and land a tough cut: Mike argues the letter writer's anxiety is partly arrogance, inserting herself into problems that are not hers ('you have the right amount of towels for your family'). Ben adds that the core problem is worrying about the opinions of fickle people. The Secular answer agrees the hotel solution is sensible and suggests spending time away during visits.

Dear LFTP: the heirloom fight, duck paintings, and sentimental things

• Am I wrong to still be upset that my sister gave away our mother's antiques?

Mike reads the final letter: after their mother died, the writer's sister Nadine gave away two antique heirlooms to her future daughter-in-law without asking, and their father only agreed she should have asked. The hosts say the initial offense was real but the time to stay upset has passed — say your piece, inventory the rest, and let the things go. Boova tells of his family's Maynard Reese duck paintings, 25 of which were sold to the Maynard Reese Foundation because 'we did not give a lick about a single one' — 'we're, like, honorary green wings for life as the Engeldinger boys.' Dan describes keeping ten totes of his mother's things and throwing away 99% of one, Ben hopes his kids will keep his worn-out Bible, and the show closes with the Bob Eisenlauer complaint line and the standing benediction.