Episode 65:  The Hidden Treasure and Pearl (Parable #12), Mark 13:44-46

A pearl is precious--a fine one can cost a fortune. But do you know where pearls come from? A tiny grain of sand or other material can find its way into an oyster shell and, by annoying the oyster, cause the oyster to secrete a film that protects itself and becomes a pearl! 

Word of the Day: pearl (n.) a round, hard mass prized as a gem.

Question of the Day: Is there anything in life that is annoying or maybe hurting you? Is there any way it can become a “pearl” or something of value for yourself or others? 

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode 64:   The Mustard Seed (Parable #11), Matthew 13:31-32

In today’s world, are most people impressed with a big or a small start? 

In early 2020, California billionaire Tom Steyer made a BIG start when he spent an amazing quarter of a BILLION US dollars on only four state primaries. In those four state elections, he gathered some 83,000 votes. But when you calculate the money he spent, that comes to an eye-popping US$3,373 per vote! And Steyer won NO delegates at all! After the February 29, 2020 South Carolina primary, he promptly withdrew from the race for president. His big start ended in a small (but expensive) whimper. 

Read more here:

https://californiaglobe.com/fl/was-tom-steyers-campaign-the-worst-in-presidential-history/

In contrast, Jesus spoke of a small start by speaking of the humble mustard seed, the smallest seed of all. Sometimes, the smallest start has the best result!

Word of the Day: mustard (n.) a kind of spice. Mustard and catsup are often put on hotdogs and hamburgers.

Question of the Day: Do you ever feel called to try or start something new, but hold yourself back because you think the start will be too small and insignificant?

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode 63   The Parable of the Growing Seeds (Parable 10), Mark 4:26-29

Have you heard the English saying, “Man proposed, but God disposes”? It deals with the mystery that probably most of us struggle with from time to time: what in life can people actually make happen, and what are the limits that people face, beyond which only God or the supernatural can do? In this short tale, Jesus tells of a farmer who planted some seeds in the dirt, and even though he did not understand how, the seeds grew on their own and eventually produced a crop. This story deals with hard work, rest, trust, and patience.

Word of the Day: dispose (v.) to make willing or open to something.

Aunt Barbara is more disposed to read than to watch TV. 

Question of the Day: Is there anything in life that you would like to do or see accomplished, but you believe it is humanly impossible? How might this parable relate to your situation? 

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode 62

Do you garden? If so, how do you handle weeds? This parable (story) from Jesus, “The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares,” is found in Matthew 13 in the Bible. It tells about a farmer who found out an enemy had planted weed seeds among his wheat, and what he told his workers to do about it. At first, no one could tell the good from the bad, but after a time, the difference was apparent.

Word of the Day: tares (n.) a kind of weed. 

In this story, the wheat and tares looked alike at first; it was only as they reached maturity was it clear that some plants were good and some were bad.

Question of the Day: What does it mean when Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear”?

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode 61: Parables (Part VIII-The Four Soils)

This episode is a short story, found in the Bible about a farmer who went out to sow (scatter/plant) seeds. His seeds fell on four different kinds of soils. Depending on what the soil was like, the seeds responded in very different ways. Is this just a story about gardening, or is there a deeper meaning about life? This story is unusual in that it appears three times in the Bible: Matthew 13:1-10, 18-23; Mark 4:3-8, 14-20; and Luke 8:5-8, 11-15.

Word of the Day: soil (n. v.)  dirt (n); to make something dirty or unclean (v.)

My wife likes to buy rich potting soil so she has beautiful plants in her garden each summer. 

Question of the Day: After you listen to this episode, which kind of “soil” is your heart? 

How do you answer this question: “Four men in a pew; which one are you?”

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode #:  60  Parables (Part 7: The Fruitless Fig Tree)

This episode is continues our series from earlier, some parables of Jesus. A parable is a short story that has two meanings: a physical, literal level, and a deeper, spiritual one. This story, from the Bible account in Luke 13:6-9, tells about a landowner who waited three years for a fig tree to bear fruit and what he saw and decided. Take a listen!

Word of the Day: fig (n.) a kind of fruit that grows on trees; very popular in Mediterranean countries like Israel

Question of the Day: What does “bearing fruit” in life mean to you? What “fruits” did you produce in 2019? What do you hope to produce in 2020?

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode #: 58   Parables   (Part 6: Watch!) 

This episode, from Luke 12:35-48 in the Bible, examines the issue of watchfulness. It starts with the tragic story of unbelievable carelessness that led to one of America’s greatest tragedies: the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor that plunged the US into WW II. In the Bible story, Jesus contrasts servants who are watchful and obedient, versus those who are careless and rebellious. It closes with some key life principles, that the more we know and have, the more responsible we are to use those blessings wisely.  

Word of the Day: watchfulness (n.) the state of actively watching and observing one’s surroundings, to be aware of what is going on and what could be a potential threat or opportunity

Question of the Day: What is one relationship or area of your life where you would benefit from more watchfulness? 

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode #: 57   Parables  (Part 5: The man whom God called “fool.”) 

This episode, from Luke 12:16-21 in the Bible, tells the story of a man who seemingly had it all: money, possessions, status. However, he had some key flaws, and they were his undoing. He had Greed, but no Gratitude. Thanksgiving is a time to “count our blessings,” but it seems his blessings caused him fear and anxiety. Listen to hear Scott’s Thanksgiving greeting and learn how “anxiety replaces joy, or joy replaced anxiety, but they cannot co-exist.”

Word of the Day: greed (n.) a selfish state of always craving more and more, with no thought for sharing or of the needs of others

The story of the “Rich Fool” is the story of a man filled with greed but no thought of others or eternity.

Question of the Day: What is the difference between “saving” and “hoarding”?

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/

Episode #:  56 Parables  (Part 4: Unequal Debts) 

Have you ever been in debt? Has the person you borrowed from ever forgiven your debt? This story, from Luke 7:36-50 in the Bible tells a brief story about the beauty of forgiveness.

Word of the Day: Pharisee (noun) 1. A religious leader from Jesus’ day; this group was known for their rigid law-keeping and opposition to Jesus  2. An arrogant, critical person who looks down on others and sees himself as perfect

Question of the Day: Have you ever been forgiven? How does it feel? 

Have a question or feedback? Maybe a topic you’d like to hear in a future episode? Please email Scott at [email protected].  We’d love to hear from you! If you enjoy our podcasts, please subscribe, write a review, and share them on social media and by word of mouth! Those are GREAT ways to help more people find our podcasts.  Please also visit us at www.DreyerCoaching.com; check out the blog posts at the bottom of the page for more information about life in the USA and the crazy English language.

Stay connected!

https://www.facebook.com/DreyerCoaching/

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/wechat

http://dreyercoaching.com/en/line

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottdreyer/