The Doug Elks Podcast

What's left when the thing you built your life around ends? Ryan Kelly is retiring from pro basketball, and he's found real peace in it.

Ryan learned to walk holding a basketball. The game took him from early-morning workouts in Raleigh to a national championship at Duke, the Los Angeles Lakers (where he checked in for Kobe Bryant in Kobe's final game), and eight years playing professionally in Japan. Now he's stepping away by choice, for his family and his body. A few years ago, he says, he would have struggled with this moment.

Ryan calls his faith story "the most boring testimony." He said yes to Jesus at seven and never stopped believing. What slipped was his priorities. Somewhere along the way, "really good basketball player" became who he was. He won a national title as a Duke freshman and couldn't fully enjoy it, because he was carrying the weight of his own performance. Today he can say it plainly: "This game is not who I am."

Ryan and Doug talk about what Coach K taught him about hard work and knowing people, why Jesus asked questions He already knew the answers to, and how a Bible study, a teammate's family next door, and the COVID lockdowns in Japan pulled Ryan and his wife Lindsey closer to God. Ryan is honest about where they got it wrong before marriage, and about the grace that carried them anyway. He also shares what he'd tell his 18-year-old self heading to Duke, and why "Here I am, send me" still applies when "send me" means the grocery store.

Doug closes with the good news of Jesus and an invitation to anyone ready to follow Him. Recorded in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Scripture referenced (ESV): Colossians 3:23, Isaiah 6:8, John 8:32, Acts 4:12, Philippians 3:20, Romans 10:9

--

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Speak ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelkspodcast/

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

In this episode Doug shares about the importance of all people calling on the name of Jesus as he teaches through Romans 10:13-17. This podcast is not only an invitation for people to call on Christ and be saved but also for believers to be encouraged to go share the gospel with urgency and compassion! We pray this episode blesses you today!

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

Donate to DOUG ELKS MINISTRIES One-Time or Monthly! (TAX DEDUCTIBLE)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Preach ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

Most of us work for approval: parents, coaches, bosses, followers. Colby Maier talks about why that's a trap and how to work from approval instead.

Colby grew up in British Columbia, where basketball was his whole life. He played on the provincial team alongside future NBA players and sent highlight tapes to D1 schools. Underneath all of it was one question he couldn't shake: am I good enough? Then, at the last practice before the tournament where college coaches were coming to see him play, he tore the ligaments in his ankle.

Stuck on the couch with his foot in a bucket of ice, he flipped to DreamWorks' Joseph: King of Dreams. It was the first time he had heard the story. Within three months he had read the Bible cover to cover, and at 17 he gave his life to Jesus.

What got him was three words Jesus said on the cross: "It is finished." For someone who had performed his whole life for coaches and parents, it meant the work was already done. Nothing left to prove to people, or to God. As Colby puts it, "We don't work for approval, we work from approval."

Colby and Doug also talk about AI and what it does to a generation that finds its worth in output, why technology "only amplifies the heart of the one who holds it," why even Jesus received His identity before He did a single miracle, and the fear of man versus the fear of God. They close on why urgency matters if Jesus really is coming back, and Doug offers an invitation to anyone ready to follow Jesus.

Colby is a content creator and the founder of the Academy of the Bible, an online catalog of courses on Scripture, apologetics, emotional healing, and the core teachings of the Christian faith. Recorded at the Holy Landings Creator Retreat in Washington, DC.

Explore the Academy of the Bible ➡️ https://academyofthebible.org

--

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Speak ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelkspodcast/

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

In this episode Doug talks with his good friend Dustin Rivenbark about their recent trip to Rikers Island to preach the gospel and minister across 4 different jails. Dustin shares some powerful testimonies of their time in the jails and also some of the messages that were shared with the men! We pray this conversation blesses you and encourages you to follow Jesus and tell others about Him! All glory to God!

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

Donate to DOUG ELKS MINISTRIES One-Time or Monthly! (TAX DEDUCTIBLE)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Preach ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

Most people wait to feel motivated before returning to God. Dayne Kamela says that's backwards. Here's what actually works.

Dayne Kamela is an entrepreneur, content creator, and author who has spent over a decade building his life around prayer. He's been healed from a mental illness with no physical cure, built an audience through daily public prayer on social media, and written two books, including his latest 60-day devotional, "The Devil Hates This Prayer."

In this conversation with Doug Elks, Dayne opens up about going through knee surgery last year and how it disrupted his spiritual routine in ways he didn't expect. What started as forced stillness became a case study in what it actually takes to rebuild a prayer life from scratch.

They talk about why so much of the church feels spiritually weary right now, why faith is a daily decision and not an emotion, and how remembering what God has already done is one of the most underused tools believers have.

Doug shares a story from a night in Mexico City before preaching, when every anxious thought hit him at once. What happened at 5am the next morning changed how he understood God's faithfulness.

Dayne's first book, "Choose Prayer Not Despair," was built around Philippians 4:6-7. His newest, "The Devil Hates This Prayer," works through 60 of the most common lies people believe about themselves and arms readers with Scripture to pray over each one.

This is a conversation about what it looks like to keep showing up for God on the hard days, not just the electric ones.

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

Donate to DOUG ELKS MINISTRIES One-Time or Monthly! (TAX DEDUCTIBLE)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Preach ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

In this episode Doug answers questions that were sent in from individuals. The questions range from boldness to burnout, favorite country to evangelize in, how God answers our prayers differently, and more.

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Speak ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelkspodcast/

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

It made no sense on paper: a sick newborn, no savings, no home waiting. Pastor Bobby Chandler moved his family across the country on faith alone, and explains what real risk actually looks like.

Bobby Chandler is the founding pastor of Authentic Church in Hickory, North Carolina. He and Doug talk about what it costs to move by faith: leaving Louisiana with a daughter who needed surgery just to breathe, starting a church in a backyard on Facebook Live, and learning that faith always means risking something you can't get back.

They dig into the Abraham story as the blueprint for faith without guarantees, why patience matters more than we want it to, the comparison trap of chasing followers instead of God's approval, and how to guard your heart in a culture built to hijack it. This is a conversation about worldview, conviction, and what it actually costs to follow God into the unknown.

Whether you're standing at a decision that doesn't make sense on paper, or just wondering if you've gotten too comfortable, this episode speaks to that.

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️

Book Doug to Speak ➡️

Doug's Instagram ➡️

Doug's TikTok ➡️

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️

In this episode of the podcast, Doug teaches through Philippians 2 on the topic of humility! He breaks down how following the example of Jesus should cause believers to live humble lives that lead to service, sacrifice, and surrender!

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Speak ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelkspodcast/

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

He won a Stanley Cup and Olympic gold in the same year, and says neither one filled him. Here is what actually did.

Jaccob Slavin is one of the NHL's most respected defensemen: an 11-year Carolina Hurricane, a 2026 Stanley Cup champion, and an Olympic gold medalist with Team USA. On paper he reached the top of his sport in every category in a single season. In this conversation with Doug Elks, he opens up about the part nobody sees: an injury that nearly ended his season before it started, the quiet pressure of performing for everyone's approval, and the difference between happiness that comes from a win and joy that a win can never touch.

Doug and Jaccob get honest about identity, the trap of tying your worth to your results, and why the verse Jaccob opened to as a nervous 21-year-old rookie still steadies him today. They talk discipline that flows from love instead of fear, keeping a real routine when life is chaotic, marriage and adoption, and holding everything you have with open hands.

If you have ever gotten the thing you chased and felt strangely empty afterward, this one is for you. It closes with Doug sharing the good news of Jesus and a moment to respond wherever you are.

Donate to the Doug Elks Ministries - One Time or Monthly (tax deductible)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Speak ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/

The Doug Elks Podcast Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelkspodcast/

Watch the episode on YouTube here ➡️ https://www.youtube.com/@Dougelks

In this episode Doug shares on the topic of HOPE! When our hope is in Jesus, He changes us now and what is to come! He offers joy and peace in our present moments while also giving us assurance of our enteral life with Him! Please join us at the Festival of Hope in Monroe, GA taking place Sept 20-23rd!

The mission of Doug Elks Ministries is to boldly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ and win souls all over the world in person, digitally, and by any means possible to the glory of God!

Donate to DOUG ELKS MINISTRIES One-Time or Monthly! (TAX DEDUCTIBLE)

Visit ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/donate

Join the Kingdom Partners ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/kingdompartners

Book Doug to Preach ➡️ https://www.dougelks.com/bookingform

Doug's Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelks/

Doug's TikTok ➡️ https://www.tiktok.com/@dougelks

Doug Elks Ministries Instagram ➡️ https://www.instagram.com/dougelksministries/