On August 13, 2021, I posted a first-of-its-kind episode in which I touted some of my favorite podcasts. I mentioned four which were especially encouraging to me and my spiritual growth at the time. Here I am a year later (still loving the Bible Recap and the Ten-Minute Bible Hour) with a new list of programs which spur me on to love and good works. Give this episode a listen and then see if one or two of the six shows I preview might be right for you.

My wife and I spend a lot of time wandering this way and that on trails. We love hiking. In this episode, I recount a time when we started in the wrong direction and what we did about it. A lesson is to be had.

Like shade on a sunny summer day, God is our refuge in times of struggle. In this episode, I honor God, our rescuer, with a few words and a song of praise. "In You, Lord, Have I Taken Refuge" is based on many words from David's 31st psalm. I pray it will encourage you.

In You, Lord, Have I Taken Refuge (Psalm 31)

Verse 1:

Be my rock and my shelter, Lord,

You can't go back and fix the mistakes in your past. You can't go back and relive the good times. What are you to do then? In this episode, I talk about what I learned from God after the transmission on my van went out.

This episode was released one year to the day and hour after my dad died. My dad was a faithful follower of Jesus and I wanted to honor him on this occasion. I wanted to remember again how blessed my family and I are to have known and loved this godly man.

I'd like to pin the blame for the lyrical lunacy on Donny and Marie Osmond. I was listening to them shortly before The Waffle Song which I share on this episode burst forth from the womb of my imagination. I hope you are entertained by this syrupy sweet love song and that you'll sing it every single time you make or eat waffles for the rest of your life.

The Waffle Song

Verse 1:

Sausage and waffles

Verse 2:

Sausage and waffles

2020 Mike Neifert

A strange instruction given me by the manufacturer when I needed an under-warranty replacement coffee maker triggered thoughts about the costs of following Jesus. This episode tells the tale of woe concerning my brewer and the narrative of Jesus inviting would-be-disciples to give up important things to join the kingdom.

Human judgment, whatever its form, is ungodly. In this episode, you'll learn how God corrected me in a moment when I was not expecting a rebuke from him. Perhaps you'll learn from my mistake and grow in graciousness.

Psalm 139 is my favorite psalm. God is honored in its words as the one who is always there. In this episode, I share my second song adaptation of a section from this psalm. The first, Walk in Your Ways, which was featured in Episode 14, focused on the prayer which ends the psalm. This episode's song, Where Could I Go?, brings to life the second section which asks the pertinent question every person must ask: Is there anywhere I could go to get away from God? The psalmist (and all of Scripture) shouts, "No!" May God bless you with a sense of his closeness as you listen.

For more than a half year, I've been spending 20 to 30 minutes every morning taking in the Bible Recap's Bible reading plan on my YouVersion app and listening to Tara-Leigh Cobble's Bible Recap podcast. I've been encouraged by the good words from God and from Ms. Cobble. This episode takes on the 5 prayers the Bible Recap folks put together to encourage connection with God while reading his word. I think they'll be helpful to you. (Visit thebiblerecap.com for more info on the Bible Recap.)