The tagline at the end of every good Christian prayer. But maybe there's more to it than that. There has to be, right? God isn't waiting for the magic words at the end of our monologue before He decides whether to bless our food, give us the winning lottery ticket, or see us sweetly off to sleep. If we're truly going to pray "In Jesus' Name," there's a commitment to a lifestyle that must accompany our prayers if we're really going to pray in His name and in His authority. That's what we discuss today. If you like what you hear, even if you don't, please like and subscribe. You can email us at [email protected] and we'll be happy to engage with you. If you REALLY like what you heard today, you can say a prayer for us...in Jesus' Name. ;-)

In our second attempt at this topic (because technology was not our friend the first time around), we talk about the fact that we are all "the one", the one sheep that wandered off and for whom the Good Shepherd left the 99 others to come search for us. As Isaiah reminded us, ALL of us are sheep that have gone astray and God came and found us. But once we're found and brought back into His Kingdom, then what? Well, we are the 99 who follow the Shepherd to go get the others. We are to light a lamp and go search for the lost coins (to borrow from another of Jesus' parables).   Also in this podcast, we have a couple clips from The Chosen, the outstanding production of Angel Studios. Thank you for allowing us to share your message as you work to share THE MESSAGE. #ComeAndSee

The Garden, Eden, where God and people lived in unbroken relationship with one another. It's where we started and it's a pattern and place that shows up throughout Scripture. But it's not just history, it's present reality. Israel envisaged Eden in the Tabernacle and then the Temple, places where God's space and our space overlap. However, in a post-resurrection world, where God's Spirit has been given freely to all of us, we are Eden. Let's dive in and see how this applies to our day-to-day lives.

Building on a theme that started to develop at the end of last week's episode, we discuss the implications of Ephesians 2:10, "For we are God's masterpiece..." The Greek word translated in the New Living Translation as "masterpiece" is "Poiema," It's where we get our word "poem." We are God's poem! How amazing is that?! Let's dive in and see what this means for us.

God's charge to Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply, to fill the earth and subdue it, to take charge over creation was given before sin entered the picture. What does that mean for us today? Work is part of the blessing, not part of the curse. The Eden Mandate is to go into our world and bring order where there's chaos, healing where there's pain, justice where there's injustice, and life where there is death. We are God's workmanship, his "poiema," the Greek word from which we get our word "poem." He created us carefully, masterfully, to work in the beautiful world He gave us. We are His partners in healing the world.

Today we dive into the message of the Great Renewal, how it came to us, who we were before, and how the true Gospel of Jesus Christ has changed our lives. We have John Eldredge, NT Wright, Dallas Willard, CS Lewis, and others to thank for helping us along the way. It's the best news that can ever be and we can rest assured that it's absolutely true. It's written all across the pages of scripture and when you see it and it clicks for you, you can't unclick it.

Too often our dignified and stodgy religion, our adherence to a self-image of "I'm good," gets in the way of us getting to Jesus. When Jesus walked the dusty roads of Israel during His earthly ministry, desperate people always found a way to get to Him. King David abandoned his kingly robes and danced with reckless abandon as the Ark of the Covenant returned to Jerusalem. The woman who had a 12 year hemorrhage pressed through a noisy crowd to get to Jesus and she found what she was looking for. The question we need to ask ourselves as we file into and out of our churches each week is, "Am I making a way or am I in the way?" Dignified people seldom find God; desperate people always do.

Back after 2 weeks, we're catching up and as the title indicates, ruminating about the Kingdom of God. This is after all a podcast about the Kingdom of God. His Kingdom is closer than we realize and punching through the thin veil that separates our space from God's space is a matter of faith, hope, and love. Please connect with us at [email protected] if you want to know more about God's Kingdom. It will change everything about your life for the better.

For so long we imagined God as way up "there" while we're down here, though if pressed, we couldn't define where "there" is. Heaven and the Kingdom of God were very nebulous and far removed from our lives here and now. But the more we read scripture, considering how God has revealed His plan to redeem humanity and make all creation new again, we see that God is literally closer than our skin, closer than the breath in our lungs. Today we dive into the idea from 1 Corinthians 13:12 that now we see through a glass darkly, that the Kingdom of God, God's space is much much closer than we realize.

It's a phrase that gets tossed around a lot, like beach balls at a concert, like t-shirts at a game, like cookies at a frat party, like... Okay, you get the picture. In light of Good Friday and Easter weekend that just passed, we dive into some other aspects of Jesus' crucifixion and its implications for us. The hill He died on is the hill we're called to die on. As Dallas Willard said, "Jesus didn't die on the cross so we wouldn't have to. He died on the cross so we could join Him." Boom!