Modern culture loves to swap the God of the scriptures for “the universe,” karma, or some vague higher power. It sounds inclusive, non-offensive, and spiritual — but it’s powerless to save you. In this episode, Ryan sits down with Marshall McConkie, former felony prosecutor turned full-time seminary teacher, to unpack why this subtle shift is one of Satan’s biggest wins, and how it robs us of knowing the real, living God.

From dismantling vending-machine theology to confronting our culture’s obsession with self as savior, Ryan and Marshall dive deep into what makes the real God both offensive and irresistible. Expect raw conversation about exact obedience, surrender, and why the love of God isn’t about comfort — it’s about transformation.

If you’ve ever wondered why God asks so much of us, why His rules matter, or why replacing Him with “the universe” is spiritual quicksand, this episode will challenge and inspire you to put Christ back at the center.

What do door-to-door sales, daily scripture study, and personal transformation have in common? For Savon Moniz, the answer is everything.

In this raw and powerful conversation, Savon shares his unlikely conversion story—walking into a Latter-day Saint chapel alone, Googling “what to wear,” and getting asked to pass the sacrament on day one. From there, his journey takes us through football dreams, family tension, a mission in California, and a decade-long pursuit of purpose through both faith and high-performance sales.

We dive deep into:

• Why failure isn’t just a part of growth—it is the growth
• How reading the entire Standard Works nine times has shaped his worldview
• The surprising link between rejection on the doors and spiritual resilience
• What personal development actually looks like when no one’s watching
• Why leadership is more about who you’re becoming than who you’re over

If you’ve ever wrestled with consistency, faith, or finding your “why,” this episode will hit hard—and stay with you.

What happens when you're a successful lawyer and God tells you to walk away from it all and go teach teenagers the gospel? That’s exactly what happened to Marshall McConkie (yes, that McConkie), and in this episode, he shares the wild story of how he went from the courtroom to the classroom. We talk about how real revelation usually shows up when you’re already moving, why curiosity matters more than ever, and how repentance isn’t just about fixing mistakes—it’s about staying open and real. If you’ve ever felt stuck, burned out, or unsure about what God wants from you, this one’s for you.

Everyone’s preaching self-love, self-esteem, and “you are enough”—but what if those are the wrong answers to the right questions? In this raw and riveting episode, Ryan Wilkins joins How We Woke Up to dismantle the self-help gospel and replace it with something far more powerful: the living Jesus Christ.

We talk about why the doctrine of “forgiving yourself” is a modern myth, how self-love can become spiritual cocaine, and why repentance is not punishment but power. We expose how today’s obsession with “my truth” has cracked open the door for false doctrine—even in church culture—and how returning to scriptural language can rebuild a rock-solid foundation of faith.

This episode is for anyone disillusioned with performative spirituality and hungry for something real. If you’ve ever felt like the self-help path left you empty, this conversation might just be the spiritual detox you didn’t know you needed.