Upstream with Jim and Jon

We made it to episode 60! Thanks as always for listening. This episode we talk about personal responsibility: how it seems to be disappearing from our culture; how a life without responsibility can feel meaningless; and how finding meaning, through responsibility, might be the key to happiness and a sense of fulfillment. Enjoy!

Multiple passages of scripture provide the same message: that friendship with the world is enmity with God. Jon had a question this week on how far, exactly, this extends. If you find yourself at piece with the world does that mean something is wrong? Should you go picking fights with the world just to feel some resistance? And what of struggles you experience between yourself and the church? We dive deep into these questions and more this episode, thanks so much for listening.

As the nation has come to another grinding halt in the last few weeks during protests in respect to the murder of George Floyd, we figured it was pertinent to have a conversation, or in this case, 6 small conversations, on race relations in America. We also touch on related issues like the power of speech and the Frustrated Majority. Please note: we are very aware that, as two white men in a primarily white part of the country, we have myriad blind spots in regard to the black experience. Thank you for understanding and for listening. All feedback is welcome!

On the topic of Evergreen's new Oikochurch program, we talked this week about how, relationally, a small intimate group can have a far bigger effect on the lives of its members than that of a larger group. We also discuss how this principal, going big by going small, relates to other areas of life, and how everybody needs at least one "2 a.m. friend." As always, thanks so much for listening, and stay safe out there!

Happy Memorial Day! We hope you all are having great three day weekends and are so grateful for your listening patronage. Jim and Sue had an interesting conversation on their own that Jon had his own take on, which led to this conversation on how our contemporary culture seems to decide what is right and what is wrong. We compare that with some cases of Biblical morality, including a few times when the Bible itself goes into some morally grey areas. Enjoy some family time this weekend, see y'all next week!

We get personal this week on our own non-stop fighting of our sin natures, and talk about if there is a better way to go about righteousness than trying really hard to be better and hating yourself when you fail. If being born again is really as powerful and dramatic as it sounds, why do men and women of faith still fight temptation all the way to the grave? Tune in and find out (Note: yes, we have done a sin management episode before; we tried to being some fresh material for this one. As always thanks for listening)!

Well, there it is. This week we talk about gun ownership, not through the lens of gun control legislation or our political positions on them, but on our personal convictions (or lack thereof) on gun ownership as disciples. Would Paul have owned guns? Would Jesus? Does preparing for the worst mean you lack faith/doubt the sovereignty of God? We walk through our own personal values and questions here and are not setting out to speak definitively for all Christians, so please enjoy and send us any comments/questions you have! And as always, thanks for listening.

Welcome to the first episode of year two of Upstream! Thank you so much for your continued support, we are so grateful for our listeners. This week we have another COVID-19 discussion, this time on the many ethical questions it has brought to the front of public discussion. Among them; should older Americans risk their lives for the sake of the economy? Hope you all are safe and, again, thank you.

This week marks one whole year of Upstream episodes! We could not be more grateful for those who give us their time and tune in every week, and a special shout out to our Upstream Team who support us on Patreon. We celebrate this occasion by looking back at how we started, what our goals were and where we are now, and then look toward the future of the podcast with some of our goals going forward. Look out for more from us going into our second year and, again, thank you!

This week we look as best we can into the future, when the shutdowns are eased and people are back to sharing all kind of space with all kinds of people. We look at possible changes ranging from the more dramatic to the more mundane, with a particular focus on how this culture shift might affect our professional world and its status quo. Thanks so much for listening as always, and catch us next week for our one-year anniversary episode!