Growth Project Radio

Growth Project Radio

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Growth Project Radio episodes

  • Bonus Episode: Suicide to Salvation | Interview with James Watkins

    Pastor James Watkins shares how an attempted suicide lead him to the Gospel.

    Do “Christians” consider suicide? If I commit suicide, will Igo to Heaven or Hell, or maybe somewhere “in between”? If we are “truly” “Christians”, would we even contemplate this deed at all!?? You might find yourself wondering about these and other questions regarding that hopeless feeling so deep. You feel unloved, unnecessary, everyone will be better off without you? How do your core beliefs help u navigate the waters of suicidal thoughts and acts? How can we help those who do have these feelings of complete hopelessness? Take a listen. You’ll be glad

    you did. #Takethetime #Lightoverdark #Howcoolisthat

    Strivingforeternity

    Carm

    47 min
  • Isaac and Rebekah a God given love
    Did you know that the Bible gives us an example of dedicated love between a man and a woman who didn’t even know each other? Stick around and we’ll talk about it. Here on five minutes of truth.
    One of the key characteristics of the so-called Patriarchs of the Old Testament was that, for the most part, they all had more than one wife? This was true of Abraham, Jacob, Caleb, Gideon, David, Solomon and most likely, Moses. Despite the fact that God had ordered and ordained that marriage be a monogamous union between a man and a woman, many of His most faithful followers engaged in polygamy outside of God’s desire.
    The fact that God did not cut them off from His love and His salvation is a true testament to His grace and mercy. It is also important to note that just because God did not seem to overtly punish them (as far as we know) that is not to mean the He gave them a pass or that He had relaxed His rules regarding marriage. It does go to show, however, that His love and grace is enough to still render us useful to Him in spite of our sin nature. That is, in part, what the Cross and the empty tomb were all about. Despite His command, nearly all of the Old Testament “heroes of the faith” engaged in marriages outside the boundaries God had prescribed. Except for one guy.
    Abraham’s son, and the son of the promise God made to Abraham, was named Isaac. Many people know this. What many people do NOT know is the story of Isaac’s beloved wife, Rebekah. The only wife Isaac would ever have. The story…is extraordinary.
    As Abraham grew old and was facing his mortality, he desired to see Isaac married. However, since Abraham had been obedient to God and had ended up living in a land far away from his homeland, he did not want Isaac to find a wife there. Instead, he wanted his son to find a wife among “my family” so that the promise of God might be fulfilled through his lineage. So, Abraham did what any good father would do…he sent his servant to his homeland to pick out a wife for his son.
    Of course I’m kidding. This was a very odd approach to assure a proper wife for his son, but he did it nonetheless. After imploring his servant to swear that he would find a wife for Isaac from among their extended family, the servant set out. After reaching the city of Nahor (named after Abraham’s brother) an interesting thing happened. The servant stopped by the city well and prayed…a very specific prayer.
    He requested of God that if a woman came to the well and asked a specific question in a specific way, then that would be young woman he would approach about becoming Isaac’s wife. The Bible reports that, “before he had finished praying”, a young woman named Rebekah arrived at the well and used the exact verbiage the servant had requested of God.
    Knowing that God had indeed led the servant to Rebekah, the servant immediately presented her with gifts of gold and asked about her lineage. In an answer that should surprise no one…it was determined that she was Isaac’s cousin…whom Isaac had never met. In fact, it is doubtful they even knew the other existed.
    Once the servant met the extended family, he introduced himself as coming from Abraham to find Isaac a wife and how God had led him directly to Rebekah in such a way that it could not be denied that it was from the Lord. And though the family was hesitant to let Rebekah go so quickly and implore the servant to let her linger at home a bit longer, it was Rebekah (who was probably in her early to mid-teens) who said, “I will go”.
    Upon reaching Isaac’s home, Rebekah saw him from a distance and having determined who he was, covered herself until their wedding day. The Scripture then says that Isaac, “took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death”. And through it all, Isaac would never love another woman.
    That doesn’t mean that they didn’t have issues. All marriages do. There was the entire incident where Rebekah deceived Isaac so that their son Jacob (her favorite) received a blessing that was due to the older brother Esau. So devastated was Isaac about this treachery that it is hard to believe it didn’t seriously impact family get-togethers.
    The point is, the relationship between Isaac and Rebekah was completely based on love not as the world defines it, but as God’s Word defines it. The world will tell us that love is a feeling and that every decision based on that love must be related to how we feel.
    However, there will be times in our relationship with our spouse where we will not have the associated “feelings”…especially in the midst of an argument or when we are angry. Which unfortunately happens from time to time when we are married. Isaac and Rebekah had never met…never even knew the other existed…prior to getting married. But they both knew that God had ordained this marriage and they both loved each other.
    They loved not because they felt it, they loved because they decided to love each other. It was an act of their collective will, not feeling that can change with the circumstances. Love has feelings associated with it…but it is not a feeling. It is the opportunity to decide to love someone whether they deserve it or not. It is the opportunity to decide to love even and especially when you don’t feel it. Isaac and Rebekah decided to do that because God had given them real, true love. As a result, they never loved another. How cool is that?
    On behalf of myself, Robert Houghton and all of us here at Growth Project, keep reading God’s Word.
    0 min
  • GPR 029: Suicide and the Worlds Lies – Part 2 of 2

    SUICIDE PART 2: Convinced we are gods?

    DISCLAIMER: Dr. Purvis and Robert want to express the fact that they are not experts nor professionals by any stretch of the imagination but have a passion to help us understand suicide from a Theological standpoint…

    In this episode of Growth Project Radio Dr. Danny Purvis and Robert D Houghton discuss the statistics of just how big an issue suicide is.  We also have some friendly banter discussing a recent chance encounter with famed director Barry Cook on the set of his most recent Christian movie.  Dr. Purvis explains how he has a heart for suicide victims and sufferers originating from his time as Chaplain in the Navy.  It has been a 20-year passion of his to date. 

    What are the influences on suicidal behavior? Do “Christians” commit suicide? Do we go to Heaven if we DO commit suicide?  How does the world lead us to believe we are gods? Have we been “fooled” to believe we are self- important and in charge of everything and everyone? Do we have a sense of false purpose? What exactly is the meaning of suicide? Is there real hope?

    Dr. Purvis and Robert want us all to come to realize the world is lying to us.  We are never going to be a “good” person.  We don’t have to try at all… we just have to trust Jesus.  He loves us. Only He can save us from our sin.

    We want to invite you to listen to this episode of Growth Project Radio.  We encourage you to contact us with any questions or concerns you have on your heart.  There IS hope.  You are beautifully and wonderfully made! #HOWCOOLISTHAT #LIGHTOVERDARK

     

     

    1 hr 2 min
  • GPR 029: Suicide and the Worlds Lies - Part 2 of 2
    SUICIDE PART 2: Convinced we are gods?
    DISCLAIMER: Dr. Purvis and Robert want to express the fact that they are not experts nor professionals by any stretch of the imagination but have a passion to help us understand suicide from a Theological standpoint…
    In this episode of Growth Project Radio Dr. Danny Purvis and Robert D Houghton discuss the statistics of just how big an issue suicide is.  We also have some friendly banter discussing a recent chance encounter with famed director Barry Cook on the set of his most recent Christian movie.  Dr. Purvis explains how he has a heart for suicide victims and sufferers originating from his time as Chaplain in the Navy.  It has been a 20-year passion of his to date. 
    What are the influences on suicidal behavior? Do “Christians” commit suicide? Do we go to Heaven if we DO commit suicide?  How does the world lead us to believe we are gods? Have we been “fooled” to believe we are self- important and in charge of everything and everyone? Do we have a sense of false purpose? What exactly is the meaning of suicide? Is there real hope?
    Dr. Purvis and Robert want us all to come to realize the world is lying to us.  We are never going to be a “good” person.  We don’t have to try at all… we just have to trust Jesus.  He loves us. Only He can save us from our sin.
    We want to invite you to listen to this episode of Growth Project Radio.  We encourage you to contact us with any questions or concerns you have on your heart.  There IS hope.  You are beautifully and wonderfully made! #HOWCOOLISTHAT #LIGHTOVERDARK
     
     
    0 min
  • GPR 028: Suicide and it’s root cause

    Dr. Purvis recounts his time working with suicidal people as Navy Chaplain for 20 years. We discuss some of the root causes in the first part of this two-part series.

    Suicide Hotline

    Call 1-800-273-8255

    Suicide Prevention

    58 min
  • GPR 028: Suicide and it's root cause
    Dr. Purvis recounts his time working with suicidal people as Navy Chaplain for 20 years. We discuss some of the root causes in the first part of this two-part series.
    Suicide Hotline
    Call 1-800-273-8255
    Suicide Prevention
    0 min
  • Solomon | The Wrong Treasure
    Did you know that the man who is arguably the wisest and wealthiest man in history had literally everything that he could’ve ever desired…yet at the end realized it was all for nothing? Stick around and we’ll talk about it. Here on five minutes of truth.
    One of the more interesting aspects of the Bible is its collection of people. To say that the Bible includes people from all walks of life is the height of understatement.
    From kings to con men…harlots to holy women. From fishermen to priests and murderers to the Messiah. One of the reasons these 2-5 thousand year old stories resonate with us today is because we see God’s redemptive and miraculous works played out in the lives of people just like ourselves. With the same foibles, weaknesses and problems we have as well.
    We see over and again that God’s love for us is not predicated on what we do or who we are but on Who He is and what He’s done. We cannot earn His love…neither can we do anything to make Him stop loving us. It is an extraordinary book.
    Perhaps one of the most interesting people described in God’s Word is a guy whose name is recognizable, but whose story is often unknown. I’m talking about King David’s son, Solomon. A fascinating person and an even more fascinating story. Even his birth stands as a testament to God’s grace and mercy.
    We are all, I hope, aware of Solomon’s father, David, and his terrible actions regarding an adulterous relationship. David engaged in an adulterous relationship with Bathsheba, the wife of one of David’s most loyal soldiers. After she became pregnant, David conspired to and arranged for the death of Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, in order to hide his sin…and marry Bathsheba.
    After David was confronted with his actions by his priest, David immediately repented. But there were to be terrible consequences. David was told that turmoil would engulf his family throughout his reign…and he was told that the child Bathsheba was carrying would die. David prayed for the best, but the child did, in fact, die.
    It would be easy to conclude that this was the act of a vengeful God…but that would not be completely correct. David and Bathsheba would have another child…and that child was Solomon. Solomon would go on to do extraordinary things: Serve as a wise king and build the first Jewish Temple in existence. God showed grace and mercy by blessing David and Bathsheba with an amazing child.
    And who was Solomon? It is safe to say that there has not been his equal in wisdom and wealth in the history of the world. Not long after securing his position as king, God spoke to Solomon and made an amazing offer. Simply stated, God said to Solomon: “Ask! What shall I give you.” What person would not long to hear the God of the universe tell us He will give us anything that we want?
    Realizing the gravity of what it means to lead a nation, Solomon said that he had a lot of stuff…but what he really needed and desired…was wisdom. Solomon said: “give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil.” God was so pleased with his answer, that along with wisdom, God would also bless Solomon with material things beyond measure and assured Solomon that: “there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you.” Amazing statements from a holy God.
    And God was true to His word. Solomon’s wisdom became the talk of the known world. People would travel great distances to sit in his court and hear the pronouncements of his judgment. He has been designated by many as probably the wealthiest person who has ever lived on this planet. His early reign was marked with prosperity, peace and growth. Whereas his father David wanted to build the first Jewish temple, Solomon actually accomplished this amazing feat.
    However, he was also just a person. Subject to the same shortcomings as any other person. And surrounded by so much opulence, it was inevitable that he would make his possessions and his power the central focus of his life, rather than his relationship with God.
    As Solomon depended more and more on his riches and his power, he drifted further and further from God. Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines and they succeeded in turning “his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God.” This abandonment of God led to rebellions and ultimately the division of the Jewish kingdom.
    And it led Solomon to write this: Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I did not withhold any pleasure from my heart. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done and on the labor in which I had toiled; and indeed all was vanity and grasping for the wind. There was no profit under the sun”.
    The richest and most wise man in the world that accomplished what most will never do. And it was all for nothing…because it led him from God. God blesses us with a lot of neat stuff. He does. Jobs, cars, homes and money. But He does that so that we will see that any pursuit of those things outside of Him…is for nothing. He does it to show us He is the only thing we truly need…and everything else? Well…that’s gravy. He is the true desire of our heart. How cool is that?
    On behalf of myself, Robert Houghton and all of us here at Growth Project, keep reading God’s Word.
    0 min
  • Growing through our failures
    One of the most common misconceptions most people have about God is that He relishes dishing out punishment. In fact, in the movie Bruce Almighty, the main protagonist in the story, Bruce, espouses this belief when he cries out to God saying: “Smite me, oh mighty Smiter”!
    The unfortunate truth is…this seems to be a common view of God. That not only does He relish the idea of punishment, but that He actually enjoys dispensing it. But to be honest, I just don’t see that in the Bible. Oh, I do see punishment, but I see divine judgment as a last resort for God, not an immediate knee-jerk reaction.
    Even in the Old Testament, where much of God’s judgment is seen, I see a God slow to anger and long on patience. A God that continuously pleas for His people to listen to Him instead of their own desires. And a God that exemplifies patience by holding out on judgment for hundreds or even thousands of years. Leaving millions of people to lead lives and extend generations that would never feel God’s wrath. That’s the God I see.
    And in one of the most remarkable conversations to take place in the whole of the Bible, we see just how much God wants us to grow through our failures, instead of hammering us for them. And He does that in a conversation between His Son, Jesus, and the Apostle Peter.
    This extraordinary dialogue is so important that it is recorded in all four Gospels. And through all the Gospels catch the spirit of the conversation, only one, Luke, provides us with the depth to see this truth more clearly. This encounter is recorded in Luke 22:31-34. And as always, it is best we set the scene of this interaction in order to see it in context.
    This conversation with Peter takes place in the Garden of Gethsemane just before Jesus is arrested…and hours before Jesus’ crucifixion. At this point in time, Jesus is giving His Disciples some final instructions and preparing them, as much as was possible, for the difficulties that were to come. At one point He turns to Peter and makes a very fascinating statement.
    Jesus warns Peter that Satan desired to try to crush Peter’s faith. He then makes the extraordinary promise that He has prayed for Peter so that: “your faith should not fail” (Luke 22:32a). Jesus knows that the Disciples would be facing tremendous demands upon their faith once they realized and saw that Jesus would be tortured and crucified. So He is trying to prepare Peter for this.
    But Jesus also adds in a caveat that most people miss in a cursory reading of this passage. Jesus goes on to say: “and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32b). Do you see what Jesus is saying here? He is telling Peter in no uncertain terms that he (Peter) was going to fall away. That he was going to fail.
    But notice, He doesn’t focus on the failure…Jesus instead focuses on Peter’s success after he comes back to Jesus. Jesus says: and when you have returned to Me. Meaning that in order for Peter to return back to Jesus, he has to first turn away from Him. But let’s look at Peter’s response.
    Once Jesus prophesies Peter’s failure, Peter responds by saying: “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death” (Luke 22:33). What, in essence, is Peter’s response to Jesus here? You’re wrong. Imagine telling the Messiah, which is Who Peter knew Jesus to be, that He is wrong about something. But that’s what he did. And Jesus’ response? Only after that denial did Jesus go into detail about Peter’s failure.
    Remember, Jesus’ focus, to begin with, was to emphasize Peter’s actions after the failure. Not to focus on the failure itself. It was only after Peter’s stubbornness to disbelieve Jesus and engage his own desire to focus on the failure rather than the grace, did Jesus then give a specific time and manner of Peter’s failure. Which, unfortunately for Peter, concluded when he denied three times that he didn’t even know who Jesus was…just as Jesus foretold.
    What is the takeaway here? Just this. That when we are a Believer, a child of God, when we belong to Him, saved, whatever terminology you choose, that God is way less interested in chastising our failures than He is growing us through them. With Peter, He was trying to grow Peter through a failure that had not happened yet…and that Peter said was not ever going to happen.
    As long as we struggle with our sin nature, we will fail. We will. We will not reach perfection this side of heaven. Our failures are not a surprise to God. He already knows when, where and how we are going to fail. And since He did not love Peter any more than He loves us, then he will do for us what He did for Peter. He will grow us through these failures. He will not punish them, He took care of that on the Cross. He will at times allow temporal consequences for our failures…but He will not punish His own for failing. He will not focus on the failure. Instead, He will focus on what happens…when we come back to Him. That’s what forgiveness of sin is all about. How cool is that?
    On behalf of myself, Robert Houghton and all of us here at Growth Project…keep reading God’s Word.
    0 min
  • GPR 027: Our Testimonies | Housekeeping
    Robert and Dr. Purvis share their testimonies after catching up on some awesome things going on with Growth Project.
    Mentioned in Show:
    Lauren Daigle
    Striving for Eternity
    Mariage Retreat Sign Up
    Ruth and Job
    0 min
  • To Eat The Flesh | The Disciples Who Walked Away
    Did you know that with the exception of Judas Iscariot, that all of Jesus’ Disciples were loyal to the end? But did you also know that there was another group of people referred to as His disciples who left Jesus and never walked with Him again? Stick around and we’ll talk about it here on five minutes of truth.
    The vast majority of people know exactly who the Bible is referring to when it mentions Jesus’ Disciples. Even if we can’t remember all of their names, we know that when we hear the word “disciples” our minds immediately go to Jesus’ Twelve Disciples who are named in the Gospels.
    However, John records in his Gospel an extraordinary event where Jesus is conversing with three groups of people. This conversation is captured in . And the three groups to whom Jesus is teaching? The first group is often described in a variety of ways, but more than anything they were people who did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah and were dedicated to ensure His failure and ultimately His death. The second group in this story is the group comprised of the 12 Disciples. These were Jesus’ dedicated followers Whom He called as His original 12 Disciples.
    The final group is the most interesting for a variety of reasons. They are referred to in the Bible as “Jesus’ disciples” ( & 66) though they are not the same as the 12. These are different disciples. Probably people who had seen Jesus’ miracles and heard His teachings and were intrigued by His message. These are probably the same people who were part of the 72 folks Jesus sent out on a mission trip in Luke chapter 10.
    However, these disciples, as opposed to the 12, would not stay loyal to Jesus…and, in fact, they would actually walk away from Him. Why? Because…simply put…Jesus told them that in order for them to be true followers they would have to: “eat My flesh and drink my blood”. After initially complaining about the difficulty of this teaching, John writes, perhaps, some of the most heartbreaking words in all of Scripture. John wrote: “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” ().
    On the surface, one might be sympathetic to their plight. This teaching Jesus was espousing had to have been incredibly difficult to understand. Jesus tells all of the people listening to Him that: “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (). This had to be a hard teaching to comprehend. In fact, the disciples (not the 12) actually make this point in when they exclaim: “This is a hard teaching, who can understand it?”
    And though there are examples in the Scripture where Jesus goes into great detail explaining some of His more complicated teachings, He does no such thing here. In fact, when they question His comments about people eating His flesh and drinking His blood, Jesus simply repeats the claim 4 times…He doesn’t explain it. He simply repeats…4 times…that they need to eat His flesh and drink His blood.
    As a result of their not understanding this curious teaching, the other disciples (not the 12) decide that since they could not understand what Jesus was saying…that it was too hard to understand…they rejected all that Jesus had done up to that point…and they walked away from Him forever.
    But what about the 12? They have been a bit of an afterthought in this story up to this point. They heard the same teaching. They heard the same complaints. It would be the height of foolishness for us to believe that they did not have some of the same doubts. So what did they do? After the other disciples leave, Jesus turns to the 12 and asks the most important question: “Do you also want to go away” ().
    And as he did so often, Peter spoke on behalf of the 12 when he stated: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” ().
    But notice what he didn’t say. He didn’t tell Jesus: “Yeah, this whole drinking blood and eating flesh stuff…we got that. We understand all of it”. He never claimed or hinted at the fact that he or the rest of the 12 understood anything that Jesus had taught. In fact, they didn’t understand that teaching any more than the other disciples did.
    What did they do? They trusted Jesus…even when they didn’t understand a word that Jesus meant. They came to understand it…at the Last Supper…but they thought the drinking blood and eating flesh stuff was just as weird as the other disciples thought it was. But they trusted Jesus…at a time when it was hard to do so. And isn’t that what faith really is? Is it really faith if we understand everything that Jesus said or did? Or is it faith when we trust Him when every single cell in our body is screaming out for us not to. When something happens to us we don’t understand what are we going to do?
    Leave and never walk with Him again…or do we say Lord, where else am I gonna go? You alone have words of eternal life…whether I understand everything or not.
    On behalf of myself, Robert Houghton and all of us here at Growth Project…keep reading God’s Word.
    0 min

About Growth Project Radio

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Growth Project Radio is a fresh new show with Dr. Danny Purvis and Robert Houghton discussing everything from Theology to the Arts. All through a Biblical worldview. If you are a Christian and enjoy…