God wants us uncomfortable.  If you aren't operating in faith, you need to check yourself.  God is going to lead you to places where you can't do it on your own, you're going to need Him!  Remember the story of Gideon.  When facing insurmountable odds, God fought his battle for him.  The practical is faith!

We don't like stepping in those arenas where we'll require God to help us.  We don't like being uncomfortable.  But if we are following Christ, that's right where we will end up!

And it's not enough to just believe.  We have to take on the death that Christ took on.  Remember the ten virgins!  They all had separated themselves from the world, but only 5 had oil.  What happened to those without oil?  They were left outside when the door was shut.

It's not hard to follow Christ...it's impossible.  That's why you must lose your life and Christ has to be living in you to follow it out.

All power and authority has been given to us by Christ. 

It’s not about giftings or “figuring it out”. It’s about the mandate to go and make disciples. 

We should be seeking the Word, living and active, sharper than any double edged sword. And it’s not enough to just come and listen to the word, we have to do what it says!

With many men, it’s not whether or not they want to lead or do what God’s telling them to do, it’s that they’ve never been taught. We have to be taught, and then we have to teach!

There is a standard that is to be met and it cannot be met without the blood of Jesus. But it’s a personal relationship, it’s a walk!  Many claim to know Jesus…but does Jesus know you?

Read your Bible. Let your family see you reading your Bible. Pray over your family.  Walk it out. 

In this compelling episode, Brett and Nathan dive deep into the spiritual authority granted to every man of God through the Lamb who was slain. They echo the cry of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!”—a call not just to acknowledge Christ, but to recognize the weight of His sacrifice and the authority He now imparts to His Bride.

This episode is a rallying cry to fathers and husbands: Stop letting the enemy yank your chain. The devil isn’t intimidated by a dusty Bible on your desk—he trembles at the Living Word spoken in authority. Brett and Nathan unpack the Greek word “distomos”—meaning “double-mouthed”—revealing that the Word of God becomes a  double edged sword when it is spoken not only by God, but also by His people.

Listen in as they challenge men to rise as priests in their homes, to take their stand, and to speak God’s promises with boldness and faith. It’s time to take back your family, your identity, and your territory—by the blood of the Lamb and the Word of your testimony.

Now that we understand the Order, we understand the importance of spiritual fathers.

How can we be spiritual fathers, though?

The answer lies in the One above us: Jesus Christ.  Our covering.

Jesus chose to never figure it out.  He only did His Father's will.

He humbled himself, even to death.  The picture of biblical meekness: controlled strength.

Because we know His word, we know His walk.

What does being a spiritual father look like practically, though?

Discipleship!  Teach others!  Our qualification is in Christ; all it takes is a step of obedience.

Do we want to have a generation that ends up like the generation after Joshua's, who neither knew nor worshipped the Lord?

Men...get out there and wade the waters!

In the Garden of Eden, it was when Adam ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that their eyes were opened and they were deceived. 

That’s when the order was disrupted, and man stepped out of God!

The anointing flows from the head down, and 1 Corinthians 11 says there is an order: Jesus is the covering for man, and man is the covering for woman. 

There is a purpose for this order…it is protection for us!  Adam put Eve in between himself and the covering of God. 

The enemy wants to distort the order, he has been from the very beginning.  Pay attention to the world around you, the enemy is attacking the order still!

This episode, Nathan and Brett continue in discussing the Lampstand.

In Daniel 9, the prophecy states that after sixty-two sevens, the Anointed One will be put to death.  Who is the Anointed One?  Jesus!

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus began to consume the wrath of God, even though he begged for the cup to pass…he did this for us!  “Gethsemane” translates to “oil press.”

Jesus had to die for our sins, so that the oil could be poured out at Pentecost…so that the Holy Spirit could fill His church!

Why is this important?  Because IT MATTERS!  The anointing matters! The souls of men matter!

Hosts: Nathan Johnson and Brett Thomas

Producer: Brooks Mooneyham

Website: lampstandministry.org

We're back with Nathan Johnson and Brett Thomas as we kick off Season 2 of Catch You On The Way Up. 
Episode Description: In Exodus 25 God told Moses to hammer out a lampstand of pure gold. Could you imagine? The lampstand stood in the Holy place of the tabernacle and in both temples, radiating light and symbolizing God's presence. Though the physical lampstand disappeared in 70 AD Revelation 1 and 2 shows Jesus walking amongst 7 golden lampstands, representing the 7 churches. This is the mystery: The lampstand is the "Church", the Bride of Christ. It is through us, his people, that God's light shines in the world. If there has ever been a time for the Church to wake up and recognize her identity as the lampstand its now!

Join Brett and Nathan in this episode as they teach about the indentity of the Church as the lampstand.

Hosts: Nathan Johnson and Brett Thomas

Producer: Brooks Mooneyham

Website: lampstandministry.org

In this episode, Brett and Nathan answer some fantastic questions from our listeners and possibly get some inspirations for future podcast episodes!

We hope to catch you there, unless!

"Yes, I am coming soon."

These are the final words of Jesus Christ in the Bible.  Remember that when we say that Jesus is coming soon, they are HIS words, not ours!  And remember that God is not slow in keeping his promise, as WE understand slowness.  For "with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day."

Everything began in the Garden, and everything will end in the Garden.  Eden shall be restored!  The river of the water of life will flow.  No longer will there be any curse.  There will be no more night.  HE will reign forever and ever!

Do you have ears to hear?

Once God's judgement is complete, there will be a NEW Heaven and a NEW Earth!  The old order of things will be gone...tossed away and remembered no more!

No more death, no more pain.  God's dwelling place will be among HIS people!  And a new Jerusalem will be established...it's beauty and wonder unfathomable.  A city without a temple, because God and Jesus, the Lamb, ARE the temple!  Nothing impure will ever enter it, only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life!

Make sure that your name is written in the BOOK, not the many books.  The Lamb's Book of Life!

Do you have ears to hear?