CHASING BUTTERFLIES

A Totally Spontaneous Conversation With Occasional Co-Host:  Steph Cherry

Nothing about today's Table was planned.  It was all inspired by a surreal moment at Disney World when Winnie the Pooh was espied chasing butterflies across a grassy field.  And hardly anybody noticed.  But I did.

I returned from Disney.  A special guest had to cancel.  Steph and I were set up for a Zoom conversation anyway.  And about half way through, I decided to hit the record button.  I'm still not sure why.  I had no plans to use any of what follows.

Then we started swapping recent trip stories to Israel, the Magic Kingdom, the Smoky Mountains, and the absurdity abounded.  There was no substance abuse in the recording of this Table, but there was a drug dog.  And Petra, princesses, camels, birds, Magdala, Indiana Jones, Jesus, and pixie dust, with Ross King's incredible new song "Like Jesus" (Used by Permission) to net it all together.

Listen as you're "busy, busy, busy doing nothing."  Winnie would.

https://www.rosskingmusic.com

Happy Father's Day - and welcome to this special Bonus Table Episode.  If you are a father of a baby soon to be born - if you are a dad of children anywhere between the ages of 8 seconds to 8 decades - if you are a single mother raising your child - if you are a grandfather, mentor, or anyone fulfilling the role of a father in a child's life - you know who you are - this episode is for you.

This is a very personal Table.  I share 7 prayers I pray for my grown children and their families every week - Monday through Sunday - one prayer for each day.  Use these prayers however you choose.  Greater still, may they inspire you to create your own 7 prayers.

A very special thank you to singer-songwriter J Lind for permission to share his newest song - "Oxford Sweater."  Check out these links to learn more about J's music:

https://www.jlindmusic.com

https://atwoodmagazine.com/oxsw-j-lind-oxford-sweater-song-premiere/

A Conversation With Special Guest:  Daniel Johnson

About a Husband and Father Who Lived Like Jesus:  Doug Johnson

Sometimes it seems people who love and serve Jesus uncommonly well go home to be with the Lord much too soon.  Sometimes.

This is Doug Johnson.  He lives like Jesus.  He loves the Word of God.  He loves people and while he walked among us, he wanted them to love the Word who became flesh and walked among us as well.

He was not perfect.  He was not a saint.  He was a rascal and he would be the first to tell you so.  He is my friend.   It is a humbling joy to present this special remembrance to the glory of God and to my dear, dear friends - the Doug Johnson Family.  To his wife Rebecca.  To his daughter Rachel.  To his son Daniel who joined me at the Table to share the life of a "good, good father."

Featuring Ryan Proudfoot's song "Whatever It Takes" (Used by Permission).

Pause and ponder those two words.  What do they whisper to your soul?  Which direction do they sweep across your heart?  What sparks do they fan into flame?

Never underestimate the power of well-placed words.  Today's episode introduces what could easily be described as the 72 most mind-blowing words that have ever been strung together.  The secret to the simplicity we all seek succinctly summed up in one minute, thirty-seven seconds.  72 words, 97 seconds, out of the mouth of Jesus encouraging one thing.  Simply live.  Welcome to the Table!  Beatitudes are on the menu!  We saved you a seat!

Featuring the Wayne Kerr Band song "Greatest Day Ever" (Used by Permission).

Did you know the average child laughs over 300 times a day?  And the average adult?  Only 17 times.  Today's episode will encourage some of us to reclaim those 283 laughs we've been missing.

There is wisdom in whimsy.  And there is life.   Proverbs 17:22 declares, "A cheerful heart is good medicine."  And this is just a holy hunch, but we're not sure you can really be listening for God's voice and not hear His gentle chuckling.

We dare you to tune in for a few moments and not at least smile.  Whimsy is that contagious.  And this is flat-out one of the funnest episodes we've ever done.  So there.  Pull up a see-saw and join us.

Note:  No feathers were ruffled in the editing of today's edition.

Featuring "Seahorses" by Singer-Songwriter Ross King.   (Used by Permission)

Also featuring excerpts from the oldest known recording of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D Minor

A Conversation With Special Guest:  Wayne Kerr

Braving.  To meet or face courageously.  To pursue what makes you come alive.  To listen to a God whisper on the wind.  To launch into the river, toss the oars, and raise sail.  Braving.

Today's special guest is Wayne Kerr - Artist.  Musician.  Creative.  In 2020, Wayne released an incredible book titled - Braving.  It is a joy to bring Wayne to the Table along with co-host Steph Cherry as we explore the daunting, exhilarating life we all could be living if we dared to get into the river and let go.

We saved you a seat so you can.

Pause.  Be.  Challenged.

Go.  Be.  Brave.

https://www.kerrvillegallery.com

Featuring Wayne's song "The Mirror" (Used by Permission).

Rules.  Everybody has them!  Some of us get caught up in them.  Some of us have a total disdain for them.  But whether you are compliant or whether you rebel, you have to admit - we all have rules.  We all have formulated a system of accumulated guidelines we use to navigate life.

In today's appetizer episode, host Robert Barge will share a few of his personal rules curated through the years.  You may hear a rule or two you wish to adopt for yourself, but even more so, today's podcast is shared with the encouragement that you will curate your own list of personal guidelines.  So don't bail out just yet.  We think you might be in for a delightful surprise or two.

Featuring "The Potter and the Clay" by Singer-Songwriter J Lind   (Used by Permission)

https://www.jlindmusic.com

Life is a mighty fine mosaic.  A Van Gogh canvas exploding with glory and fervency.  Impressions layered on thick by a cacophony of word and thought.    Spinning at a blur.  Always saying something if you but dare to listen.  God's whispers wisp all around.

Today's conversation with Christian Life Coach (and occasional Guest Co-Host) Steph Cherry froths with whimsy and wisp.  From country roads to Palm Sunday donkey butts, to gleanings from Steph's visit at a recent Writer's Conference.  You might think this is much ado about nothing, but we dare imagine there's a sentence here, or two, that might prompt a resurrection within.  Skye Peterson's wonderful song alone is worth the table stop.

Featuring "Resurrection In you" by Singer-Songwriter Skye Peterson

 (Used by Permission)

It was the Thursday night before Jesus was arrested, tried, and nailed to a cross.  In less than 24 hours, He would be dead.  His last hours of freedom were spent in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Gethsemane means "oil press."

Jesus confesses to His disciples, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow."  The forces of darkness and evil are already descending on Him.  The snake is in the garden again.  The boa constrictor of distress is circling His whereabouts and is dangling from the olive trees.

Step with us into "the place" where the cross was settled.

The snake is in the garden.

Gethsemane is the oil press.

And Jesus is the olive.

Featuring "Celebrity" by Singer-Songwriter Ross King (Used by Permission)

For many of our listeners, it is the season of Lent.  Lent is a time when Jesus' followers reflect on His life, death, and resurrection.  It is also a season of identifying with sorrow, brokenness, and sacrifice.  Lent is a desert season.

On any given day, today's episode would be timely.  In the past few days, our hearts have been stunned once again by senseless tragedy in Nashville, Tennessee.  Over the weekend, tornados literally blew entire communities off the map.  And on and on our stories unravel.  Not a single day goes by where we could not pray for someone presently experiencing loss.  We live in a world of perpetual Lent and lament.

On today's episode, I share three brief essays I wrote ten years ago during a prolonged season of personal grief:  When Prayer Becomes Breath, A Warning to Jesus On His Last Night on Earth," and Epic.  And we will also hear another great song from J Lind.  So, have a seat at the Table and lean in to lament.

Featuring "Lean Into It" by Singer-Songwriter J Lind   (Used by Permission)