Daily Living For Christ

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If your faith feels like constant output, this conversation offers a different starting point: belovedness. We talk about the difference between being and doing, and why so much “good” activity can still come from a wound, a need, or an identity that doesn’t feel secure. The question that keeps surfacing is painfully practical: Is my doing coming from my being, or from my protective self trying to stay safe?

We walk through a clear Gospel pattern in three movements: baptism, where identity is established before any public work; wilderness, where that identity is tested under pressure; and ministry, where agape becomes a daily expression. Along the way, we unpack relationship, identity, and delight as the order that makes intimacy with God possible, and we name how temptation often targets identity more than behavior.

Then we slow down and watch agape in action through four scenes from Jesus’ life: touching the leper when everyone expected distance; washing feet from a place of secure origin and destination; weeping at Lazarus’ tomb without shame or emotional armor; and restoring Peter after failure without keeping score. Each scene exposes the limits of the protective self and invites a better way of living, serving, and loving.

If you want Christian identity, spiritual formation, and discipleship to feel grounded instead of driven, press play. 

Subscribe, share this with a friend who feels worn out, and leave a review with the scene that challenged you most.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the “right” Christian things but still feel tired, anxious, or secretly driven, we name the question that gets to the root: Is my doing coming from my being or from my wound? I walk through the heart of the Loved To Love series and the difference between Agape as God’s source and Agapao as love in action. The New Testament uses love as a verb again and again for a reason, and it’s not to make us hustle harder. It’s to teach us how love was always meant to live: flowing out of a secure identity, not chasing one.

Then we move from Greek words to the living embodiment, Jesus of Nazareth. The Gospels show miracles, teaching, service, compassion, and the road to Good Friday, but I want us to ask the question we usually skip: "Where did that love come from?" Jesus doesn’t love out of duty, moral pressure, or fear. He loves from a settled, unshakable belovedness, and that changes how we read every healing, every touch, every act of mercy.

We slow down at the baptism of Jesus in Matthew 3:17, where the Father speaks about relationship, identity, and delight before Jesus does a single work of ministry. From there, the wilderness temptation in Matthew 4 exposes the strategy that still works in modern times: “If you are…” The goal isn’t just to get us to fail. The goal is to make us prove. 

Subscribe for the next part, share this with someone stuck in a wilderness season, and leave a review so more people can find this message of belovedness and daily Christian living.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

Love can look holy on the outside while quietly running on fear underneath. That tension is where we start: not with more effort, but with the deeper question of what is powering your “yes” in relationships, serving, and daily Christian living.

I walk through the sacred rhythm of agape using the New Testament’s language of love and why the verb form matters so much. We unpack four movements that show up again and again in Scripture: agape as God’s divine source, agapitos as beloved identity received, identity expressed as a formed vessel, and agapao as love in action. Along the way, I name the difference between protective self doing (loving to feel worthy, needed, safe, or approved) and beloved self doing (loving because we’re already secure). The goal is freedom, not shame.

Then we get very practical. I answer the question “what does it mean to remain empty?” using Jesus’ first miracle at Cana (John 2) as a template for spiritual formation: empty jars, filled to the brim, drawn from overflow, and carried to where it’s needed. We connect this to kenosis (Philippians 2), stillness and solitude, and the quiet power of serving without recognition. I also give you a simple diagnostic question to carry into your week: is my doing coming from my being, or from a wound or a need?

If you want a deeper, more honest way to talk about agape love, identity in Christ, contemplative prayer, and love that moves without performing, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who feels exhausted by “doing,” and leave a review so more people can find the path back to belovedness.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

Something changes when you stop treating love like a religious performance and start treating it like an overflow of identity. We’re building on the beloved journey and taking the next step into what Daily Living for Christ actually looks like when you know you’re already loved, chosen, blessed, and seen by God, even in your wounds. Abiding in Christ isn’t a spiritual finish line here. It’s the launching point where fruit can grow because you’re living from presence rather than pressure.

We also open up a lens that can reshape how you read the New Testament: the Greek words around Agape. We talk through Agape as God’s divine love, Agapetos as belovedness and identity, and Agapao as love in motion. That last piece matters because the writers of the New Testament choose the verb form of love again and again, pushing us past definition into action. Love becomes something you participate in, expressed in relationships, rooted in God’s delight rather than your need to prove anything.

Along the way, we name the hidden drivers that can sit underneath “good” behavior, including woundedness, fear, and the subtle hunger to earn belonging. This sets up the next crucial conversation on being versus doing, and why God cares so much about what’s happening inside the heart that gives.

If you’re hungry for Christian spirituality, spiritual formation, and a grounded understanding of Agape that leads to real change, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the journey. 

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

The spiritual journey is not about proving our value, earning God’s approval, or achieving a higher state of holiness. It is about learning to remain in the Agape that is already ours. In this final episode of the Beloved series, Donald E. Coleman explores the sixth movement of beloved identity: Abiding.

Drawing from John 15:4-9 and Jesus’ rhythm of withdrawing into quiet prayer, this episode invites listeners to discover abiding as a daily returning—a gentle, life-giving reorientation toward God’s presence. Instead of striving for spiritual experiences, we learn to rest in the Agape that never leaves us.

This episode will help you:

·       Understand abiding as a posture of the heart, not a task to accomplish.

·       Develop ways to return to God’s love throughout the day.

·       Recognize and release the patterns that draw you away from peace.

·       Live from a grounded, stable, love-rooted identity in Christ.

If you desire to live from peace, presence, and a deeper awareness of God’s love, this episode offers a simple, beautiful invitation:

Come home to the love that has always held you. Abide in Belovedness.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

Many believers want to serve God and others well—but serving from effort, pressure, or identity-striving leads to exhaustion. In this episode, Donald E. Coleman continues the Beloved series by revealing the fifth movement of beloved identity: Given. When we know we are Beloved, Chosen, Blessed, and Agapetón (Loved) in our Brokenness, we naturally become a gift to the world, not because we try harder, but because Agape begins to overflow.

Drawing from Luke 22:19, John 13:3–5, and the compassionate example of Jesus, this episode shows how the spiritual life moves from identity to expression. We explore how Jesus served others with humility and tenderness—not to earn approval, but because He was already secure in the Father’s love.

This episode will help you:

·       Understand the difference between giving from fullness and giving from depletion.

·       Recognize the quiet ways God is already pouring Agape through your life.

·       Release the pressure to prove yourself through spiritual service.

·       Learn to let your life become a gift naturally, gently, and authentically.

If you have ever felt worn out from trying to “do enough” for God or others, this episode invites you to return to a simpler truth:

You are loved — and love flows from you.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Send us Fan Mail

Your worst day doesn’t cancel your belovedness. We sit with a message many of us spend years resisting: God’s Agape is not waiting on the other side of healing, success, or a cleaned-up story. We’re loved exactly where our heart aches, and that love is meant to be received deeply enough that it overflows into the world around us. 

We walk through the “fourth movement” of beloved identity by reframing brokenness through Scripture. Psalm 34 anchors the promise that the Lord is close to the brokenhearted and attentive to our cry, while John 20 shows Jesus stepping into a locked room full of fear and speaking peace. Even Thomas is invited closer through wounds, not pushed away for doubting. That’s the turning point: Jesus doesn’t prove resurrection with strength; He reveals scars to open intimacy. 

We also challenge the way modern culture can make trauma a currency and a label. Your wound is real, but it doesn’t get to be your name. Drawing from Henry Nouwen and Isaiah 53, we explore how spiritual brokenness can become the doorway into communion, where grace becomes experienced and healing becomes personal. You’ll leave with a simple breath prayer, honest reflection questions, and a grounded reminder that hiding shrinks relationship while honesty grows it. 

If this speaks to you, subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next, share it with someone who feels disqualified by their pain, and leave a review so more listeners can find it. Where have you been afraid to be seen in your brokenness?

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Many Christians mistakenly believe that God draws near only after we have healed, matured, or overcome our struggles. In this episode, Donald E. Coleman continues the Beloved series by revealing a deeper truth: God meets us in our brokenness and Agape (loves) us there.

Drawing from Psalm 34:18, John 20:27, and Henri Nouwen’s teaching on beloved identity, we explore how Jesus revealed His wounds after the resurrection—and how His loving gaze toward Peter in a moment of shame demonstrates that our wounds are not disqualifying, but invitational.

This episode will help you:

·       Let go of the belief that brokenness is failure.

·       Understand how Jesus meets us in the places we hide.

·       Learn to receive love in the exact places you feel least worthy of it.

·       See your wounds as openings where intimacy with God can deepen.

·       Begin to rest in a love that holds you even when you tremble.

If you long for a love that does not require you to be strong first, this episode is a quiet invitation:

You are Beloved, even in your brokenness.

"Have Questions, Send us a Message"

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring to you in any way, please share it with someone else. Lastly, please follow the show and write a review.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement.

Send us Fan Mail

God’s gaze can undo years of striving in a single moment, but only if we let ourselves be seen. We jump into a core claim that runs through the whole “Beloved” series: you are not trying to become beloved. Your identity is already settled, and the healthiest spiritual growth starts when you stop treating love like something you earn. From there, we name the theme of this message clearly: you are blessed, which means you are seen with Agape, God’s divine love, not evaluated, measured, or compared.

We slow down and redefine “blessed” using Scripture and lived experience, including the priestly blessing from Numbers 6 and its surprising emotional center: peace. We talk about what changes when you believe God’s face is turned toward you with joy, and why the real question isn’t “Am I loved?” but “Have I accepted the love God already gives?” If you’ve ever felt like church language became a scoreboard, this brings you back to the gospel as divine favor, protection, and presence.

Then we watch Jesus bless people up close. Children are welcomed and held in Mark 10, showing that receiving is childlike openness, not spiritual negotiation. We connect Henri Nouwen’s insight that blessing is spoken belovedness, and we walk through three vivid moments where Jesus restores identity: “I saw you” to Nathanael, “daughter” to the woman labeled unclean, and a loving look toward Peter in failure. The episode closes with a short contemplative breath practice and reflection questions you can carry into your week.

If this helped you breathe again, subscribe, share it with a friend who feels measured, and leave a review so more people can find this message of Agape love, Christian identity, and peace.

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring, please share it with someone else.  And if you haven’t yet, follow the show and leave a review. It is a simple way of partnering with us to carry this message further.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement. 

Go deeper into the Hidden River.
If something stirred in you today, I invite you into the pages of my books:

Beloved of God: The Truth That Changes Everything: the invitation to stop striving for love and begin living from the love you have already been given. Now available.

The Eighth Prayer: the first book in the Hidden River Series, a journey beyond words into the stillness where God has always been near.

Learn more at donaldecoleman.com.

Many believers understand blessing as something God gives, but few have experienced blessing as something God does—God sees us with Agape. In this episode of the Beloved series, Donald E. Coleman explores what it means to be Blessed, not because of what we achieve or become, but because of who we are in the heart of God.

Drawing from Numbers 6:25, Mark 10:16, and Henri Nouwen’s teaching on beloved identity, this episode invites listeners to rest in the truth that God’s gaze is Agape. We reflect on how Jesus blessed others by seeing them deeply—like the children He gathered in His arms, like Nathaniel under the fig tree, like Peter in the moment of failure—and how we are called to receive and live from this same blessing.

This episode will help you:

·       Understand blessing as recognition, not reward.

·       Let go of the need to perform or prove your worth.

·       Receive God’s loving gaze in a personal and transformative way.

·       Heal the parts of the heart that learned to hide or self-protect.

·       Learn to bless others with the same gentleness Christ shows to us.

If you have ever struggled to receive Agape (Divine Love) without earning it, this episode offers a healing invitation:

“Let the Lord’s face shine upon you.”

"Have Questions, Send us a Message"

This podcast is a production of The Center for Biblical Coaching and Leadership. If this episode has been useful or inspiring to you in any way, please share it with someone else. Lastly, please follow the show and write a review.

If you want to go deeper on this journey, visit www.tcbcl.org to learn how we’re walking this path together through biblical coaching, spiritual formation, and the ROOTED Global Movement.