Bible Geeks Podcast

When is it hardest to stay consistent with our kids? What virtue gives us our compass? And what does the Bible say to do to bless our children? This week we continue our guided study on parenting with a discussion of integrity, followthrough, and consistency. What Jesus Said in Luke 16:10-13 reminds us that trust is built in small acts, and 4 Proverbs on Integrity teach us that our actions are on full display for our kids. The conversation leads us from our failures to God's wisdom, stopping to talk about Captain Hook, I Love Lucy, family bake-offs, and whining children. Whether you're a parent or not, we hope you find some encouragement to keep your commitments, tell the truth, and live faithfully.

The Big Idea: Integrity reinforces our kids' structural support system.

This Week's Challenge: Sit down with your spouse and evaluate your consistency, discipline, and followthrough.

Show Notes

• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 3 (Color PDF)
• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 3 (B&W PDF)
• "Structural Integrity" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Jesus Said ... Luke 16:10-13 (VERSE)
• “Looking Through You” (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• "Built to Bend" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Training Wheels Guided Study (WEBSITE)

Support the Show

What are the "No Matter What's" in your home? And how do we keep worship from becoming just another thing we "have to do"? We're in session two of our guided study on parenting, focusing on our devotion to God as a family. In a Poetry In Motion double-header, we take on Psalm 127 and 128, talking about dusting, road trips, comparing families, and the difference between the home the Lord builds and the house of futility. We also learn from Jesus' upbringing, celebrate family singing, and discuss different kinds of prosperity in a home. We hope you'll check out the downloadable study guide and accompanying video, and consider sharing this study with your friends who are "in the trenches" of parenting right now!

The Big Idea: Worship isn't just what we do as a family, it's who we are.

This Week's Challenge: Sing a song of praise to God as a family.

Show Notes

• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 2 (Color PDF)
• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 2 (B&W PDF)
• "Almost Ancient" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Finding Jesus ... Luke 1-2 (VERSE)
• Poetry in Motion: Psalm 127-128 (VERSE)
• "Structural Integrity" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Training Wheels Guided Study (WEBSITE)

Support the Show

How important is it for couples to stay on the same page? What's God's recipe for marriage? And just how serious are covenants made before God? This week's conversation follows the study guide for session one of Training Wheels. We take on the Heavy Word "covenant" and learn that faithful love for our spouses starts in our spirits. We start with what Jesus Said about becoming "one flesh" and end by sharing how we've dealt with disagreements in our marriages through the years. We hope you find the new format helpful and encourage you to take a look at our downloadable study guide!

The Big Idea: The marriage covenant is God's foundation for a stable family.

This Week's Challenge: Ask your spouse where you need to get on the same page, and talk through whatever issues you both see.

Show Notes

• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 1 (Color PDF)
• Training Wheels Study Guide - Session 1 (B&W PDF)
• "Like Riding a Bike" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• "Sinkhole Alley" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Jesus Said ... Matt. 19:6-9 (VERSE)
• "Almost Ancient" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Training Wheels Guided Study (WEBSITE)

Support the Show

What does it really mean to "train up" a child, and what does that have to do with Hanukkah, NASA shuttle launches, and kids getting their way? This week we aim to set the trajectory for our kids and give them momentum, as we introduce our first Guided Study. It's a thirteen-session dive into biblical parenting we call "Training Wheels," and we can't wait to get started! As we prepare for session one, we look at two famous parenting passages (Eph. 6:1-4 and Prov. 22:6). Watch for Daily Download videos starting next week, and if you know any parents that you think might enjoy a series like this, please spread the word!

The Big Idea: Children tend to keep going in the direction that their training points them.

This Week's Challenge: Say a prayer for parents trying to raise the next generation.

Show Notes

• Guided Study: Training Wheels (WEBSITE)
• Finding Jesus: Eph. 6:1-4 (VERSE)
• Scripture du Jour: Prov. 22:6 (VERSE)
• "Introducing Bible Geeks Guided Studies" (VIDEO)
• Bible Geeks Guided Studies (WEBSITE)

Support the Show

Programming Note: This week, we're replaying one of our favorite episodes from the past. We'll be back next week with a brand new episode.

This week we’re all about habits! How do you get a good habit to stick, why is a sin habit so hard to shake, and what kind of habits did Jesus have? We’ve had habits on the brain lately as we both have been reading James Clear’s new book, so we’re examining our own habits and diving into God’s wisdom on this practical subject. Plus Bryan reacts to Jesus’ words on God filling us up to overflowing from Luke 6:38, and Ryan shares why his son can’t seem to shake the thumb-sucking habit. Join us for a listen!

Weekly Challenge: Identify a small habit that supports your bigger spiritual goals and incorporate into your daily routine.

Show Notes

• Jesus Said … Luke 6:38
• Atomic Habits by James Clear (BOOK)
• The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg (BOOK)
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (BOOK)
• Marginal Gains: This Coach Improved Every Tiny Thing by 1 Percent (BLOG)
• Start Tiny (BLOG)
• Bullet Journal (SITE)
• Productive habits & daily goals tracker (APP)
• Ryan’s 50 Challenges (SERMON)
• Ryan’s Habits Presentation (SLIDES)

What kind of year has it been? What do you hope for in 2022? This week we throw back to an old, favorite segment, celebrating the "new wine" Christ brings and aiming to fit it with a "new wineskin" (Luke 5:33-39). We also share our Favorite Things about last year's Cross Training — like thinking holistically about discipleship and finding a conversational "sweet spot" with other Christians. Then we close the episode explaining what we have planned for the future of Bible Geeks. We're so grateful for those of you who spend time with us each week in these conversations, and we hope you're encouraged and blessed by this year's new batch of podcasts and videos. (And maybe even find some new ways to use them!) May you grow in his grace.

The Big Idea: Christ wants to make everything new — including your thinking, affections, behavior, and relationships.

This Week's Challenge: Take note of a few of your favorite things from this year of learning and growth, and give God glory and thanks for them!

Show Notes

• Jesus Said ... Luke 5:33-39 (VERSE)
• Cross Training (WEBSITE)
• "Introducing Bible Geeks Guided Studies" (VIDEO)
• Bible Geeks Guided Studies (WEBSITE)
• Wholeheartedness (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Spiritual Awareness (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Zeal (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Burden Bearing (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Shepherding (DAILY DOWNLOAD)

Support the Show

We made it! It's our final Cross Training episode and our last episode of another crazy year! Thank you for being part of this journey — we hope it has blessed you and your spiritual growth. This week we learn when "more is more," why Bob Evans' restaurants should have whiteboards, and how Google makes a dangerous doctor! It all ties in (somehow!?!) with the Scriptural directive to seek out good advice and choose carefully who we let influence us. We start by returning to Christ's childhood as a model of growing in wisdom by getting interested in the things of God, surrounding yourself with studied counselors, asking questions, and listening! Then we dive into the story of Rehoboam listening to the wrong advice, and end by sharing how good advisors have impacted each of our lives.

The Big Idea: You can affect the counsel you receive by the relationships you invest in, the questions and topics you raise, and the care you put into listening.

Weekly Challenges: Find this week’s Through the Week challenges here.

Show Notes

• Cross Training - "Different Voices" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Cross Training - Through the Week Challenges - Week 52
• Like the Teacher: Luke 2:40-52 (VERSE)
• Here’s the Story: Rehoboam’s Foolish Advisors (VERSE)
• “Prone to Hyperbole” (WEEKLY EPISODE)
• The Bible Geeks Facebook Group (FACEBOOK)

Support the Show

Why do we tend to think we’re alone in our struggles, and how do we reconnect? If God knows me better than I know myself, and he also loves me more than I love myself — how do those truths change my commitments? And where do we find joy when it isn’t close at hand? This week we set Poetry in Motion with David’s extraordinary, intimate prayer in Psalm 139, learning to live as an open book before God. And in our opening discussion of Matthew 7:1-5, Bryan throws back to a nosy neighbor from TV’s Golden era while Ryan draws some observations from early dot com culture. The lessons from these passages bring us back to ourselves and the challenging task of seeing ourselves clearly and getting to work.

The Big Idea: God’s work in us requires our honesty with him.

Weekly Challenges: Find this week’s Through the Week challenges here.

Show Notes

• Cross Training - "Regular Checkup" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Cross Training - Through the Week Challenges - Week 51
• Like the Teacher: Matthew 7:1-5 (VERSE)
• Poetry in Motion: Psalm 139 (VERSE)
• Gladys Kravitz (VIDEO)
• I Want It Now (VIDEO)
• The Bible Geeks Facebook Group (FACEBOOK)

Support the Show

Make sure you eat before this week's episode or you might get hungry! Our discussion of hungering and thirsting for righteousness brought on a lot of food talk! We go from Michael Phelps' diet to Elf's Clause-o-meter, as 4 Proverbs encourage us to align our desires with God's, burn lots of spiritual calories, and stay hungry! We learn how to savor God's goodness and even to find the good in the bitter things of life. And some Through the Week challenges whet our appetite and lead us to some self-reflection about what these year has left us "hungry" for. It's a smorgasbord of Bible flavors, so get your plate and dive in!

The Big Idea: The more we taste God’s goodness, the more hungry we are for more. And the greater our hunger, the more we find.

Weekly Challenges: Find this week’s Through the Week challenges here.

Show Notes

Cross Training - "Gasping for Air" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)

Cross Training - Through the Week Challenges - Week 50

Like the Teacher: Matthew 5:3-12 (VERSE)

Michael Phelps’ 10,000 Calorie Diet (ARTICLE)

The Bible Geeks Facebook Group (FACEBOOK)

How does God draw us to Christ? What's the difference between learning a subject and learning a person (Eph. 4:20)? And how do we get off track when we make discipleship a competition? This week we kick off four weeks on lifelong learning, beginning with a discussion of discipleship that takes us from "old man problems" to our continuing education in faith and grace. We start with a Like the Teacher segment that leads us on a scavenger hunt and reminds us what a gift it is to be "taught by God" (John 6:45). Then we dive into some deep thoughts about dealing with the "thumbs down" button in life and about two different kinds of "following" Jesus (Matt. 4:25-5:1). It's all a humbling reminder of just how far we all still have to go, as we grow in Him!

The Big Idea: The further we go with Jesus, the more we recognize our need for his instruction and grace.

Weekly Challenges: Find this week’s Through the Week challenges here.

Show Notes

• Cross Training - "Old Dogs" (DAILY DOWNLOAD)
• Cross Training - Through the Week Challenges - Week 49
• Like the Teacher: John 6:44-51 (VERSE)
• The Bible Geeks Facebook Group (FACEBOOK)

Support the Show