Episode 137: Recovering The Axe Of Jesus

When a young prophet lost his axe, he mourned in the presence of Elisha and begged him for supernatural intervention to recover his only tool that would get the job done. While this is an exciting story from 2nd Kings 6, this episode of Mavericks & Misfits calls us to consider a very urgent application of the crucial lessons in this story. When the Church has dropped and lost what Jesus has given us to build His Kingdom with, what should our response be? In this podcast, Jeff Lyle passionately calls his listeners to consider the hour in which we are all living, and the need to recover the axe which Jesus handed the Church nearly 2,000 years ago. With it, we can build what He has designed. Without it, we will build brittle religious monuments dedicated to ourselves. This is the hour in which Jesus is offering us help to recover what has been submerged in disuse for far too long. It is time to recover the axe of Jesus.

Episode 136: Discerning & Defeating False Prophets

Who do you allow to speak into your life on behalf of God? None of us are without outside voices which work to shape our views of God, His Kingdom, our own identity, and our life purpose. Understanding how important these areas are…whose voice presently has your ear? Jesus and His apostles repeatedly warn us of the reality of the prevalence of false prophets. In fact, as time moves toward the Second Coming of Jesus, the Bible says we should be even more alert to the rise of these men and women who will presume to speak for God but actually speak errors, lies, manipulation, greed, and destruction. Happily, we are not without the ability to diagnose them, defeat them, and forbid their influence over us. Today’s episode helps us to again find the spiritually discerning eye, and also to relocate a steel-infused spine to confront this danger that is present in the Church.

Episode 135: CHURCHES: Factory Reset

What kind of local church are you a part of? Who is leading you? Do things like leadership structures, spiritual gifting, personal callings, and cooperative ministry vision really make a difference? Well, if you are the average American churchgoer, your answer may be, “It doesn’t really matter.” Yet, if you place high value on God’s blueprints for His churches, it will matter quite a bit. So much has been added to God’s plan by man over the centuries that most modern Christians may not even know that we have been operating under a faulty design for church for centuries. It is time for us to embrace the need for a full factory reset and return to the original design from God for His church. Specifically, the area of how local churches are led has to be addressed. This episode will help you evaluate where you personally stand on this vital issue, and also where your church leaders may stand.

Episode 134: What If I'm Not Really Saved

Some of what we see right now happening in our churches is an evangelistic call being released by Holy Spirit to church members. Yes, that’s right: God is offering those who have sat in churches for years an opportunity to actually be born again. Because of a lack of commitment to biblical teaching on repentance and conversion, our churches are filled with people who believe but have never been redeemed. They have an intellectual grasp of Gospel facts, but they have yet to surrender in their hearts to Jesus as Lord and King. This episode exposes the false Gospel that so many have trusted in, and it can be boiled down to this: A decision without repentance resulting in a belief without obedience. The hour is urgent, and it may be that the greatest harvest of salvations could be awaiting us right in the middle of our gathering places on Sundays.

Episode 133: Word Curses & The Spirit Of Shimei

Everyone who listens to this episode of Mavericks & Misfits will have an experience with their own personal Shimei. Do you know who this is? He is one of the most despicable people in all of the Bible. He was a partner with the devil in releasing demonic word curses against King David. From this painful snapshot in David’s life, we expose six categories of word curses and how they can impact us. Perhaps even more troubling, we may discover that we have sometimes played the role of Shimei in the life of others. For all who struggle with the voice of accusation and condemnation, today’s podcast will equip you to get free and move forward, never again agreeing with the word cursing voice of a Shimei in your life.

Episode 132: A Prophetic Urge To Prepare

Sometimes Holy Spirit hijacks the podcast episode. Originally, Episode 132 of Mavericks & Misfits was slated to focus on the issue of spiritual warfare through word curses. Within the first three minutes of the recording, Jeff Lyle felt the wind of the Spirit moving and released a calm but VERY clear word concerning what the Church in America should prepare for in the year 2023. Also included is a personal testimony of an area where Jeff failed his King in 2022, and how God brought Jeff back restored and renewed for the future. Prepare your own heart as you listen to this one – you will be left with much to consider as this year continues to unfold.

Episode 131: Kingdom Danger Zone

In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff Lyle welcomes his wife, Amy, into the studio to discuss a word that God gave Amy in December of 2022. After pondering this word privately for a few weeks, Amy shared it with Jeff, and he immediately felt like the warning was for many Christians who have unwisely wandered into a danger zone that is filled with destructive landmines. Because of this, an episode of Mavericks & misfits is being dedicated to it. An overlooked verse from the Book of James needs to be front and center in our minds as we make daily decisions about what we are communicating to those around us. Few passages in the New Testament give this specific of a warning to all believers concerning one particular dangerous and destructive behavior. Sadly, it would seem very few Christians are taking this warning seriously. We hope this episode will change their minds.

Episode 130: Is The Local Church Still Valid

Have you noticed the increase of people abandoning their commitments to local assemblies? Since Covid put local church gatherings on a temporary pause, we have discerned that many have since then seemingly concluded with the government that churches are non-essential. But is this true? Does God care if we are part of a local assembly of Christians on a regular basis? Today’s episode explores many of the reasons why people have given up on the local church. It also offers biblical pushback that God would ever approve such a notion. Our churches are terribly flawed –you don’t need nine spiritual gifts to discern that. Yet, with all her flaws, Jesus has not walked away nor given up on the local expression of His body. If you have done so, whatever the reasons, this podcast episode will offer you spiritual food for thought.

Episode 129: The Spirit Of The Age Has Infected The Climate Of The Church

It is a long title, but there was not a better way to describe what has happened to the Church in America. Jesus once rebuked two of His closest followers for not discerning what spirit they were operating in. This same rebuke is being spoken over much of the Church today. The divisive, hostile, hyper-sensitive, reactionary spirit in the culture has now infected local churches and the symptoms are primarily visible on Christian’s social media feeds. While it is plain to see in others, can I take a look in the mirror and discern it in myself? Today’s podcast calls us to decontaminate our hearts and churches before we get too much further into a new year. We must address the spirit of the age which is resisting the Spirit of God. We invited it in, we have to kick it out.

Episode 128: What God Said To Me

Sometimes we feel compelled to put our latest favorite song in our playlist on continuous play. It impacts us, speaks to us, stirs us, or settles us. We just want to hear it over and over in a loop. In the late Fall of 2022, God spoke one sentence to me that startled me. It actually hurt a little at first, but I knew it was Him speaking. As weeks went on, I would hear this same word from the Lord on repeat in my spirit, and it soon took on the scent of an invitation from Him. His continuous loop kept playing in my head and it began to shape my approach to the coming year. In today’s episode, I share that word and leave it for you, the listener, to decide if it also might be a call from Him to you.