Live from the Pathway Studios in Johnston Proper. You are live from the Pathway And you're listening to live from the Path coming from the Pathway Studios here in Johnston Proper.

Thanks for being with us. Why did the did the monks come up with kung fu? Do know what I'm saying? They're peaceful people. Yeah. I don't that's historically inaccurate. But I heard it on the radio, like, couple days ago. I don't think that's right. Fu came from the monks. I don't think that's right at all. Shaolin monks, maybe. No. No. Hey. Why did demonks make the beer?

Because because water was dirty. That's what I'm saying. Demonks are known for fighting and drinking. I'm just saying keep an eye on them. They show up with their robe and their rope, and then you're like, they're just in there doing the lord's work all the time. But secretly, they're coming up with fights and making whiskey. I don't know. Like, Nathaniel, do you think you could you think you could if you ignore the fact that you have a family? Sure. You think you could monk it? You could become a monk? No. Why not? What what would you what could you not handle about it?

I'm not sure if that's podcast ready. Oh oh my. Noted. Alright. Okay. No wonder they fighting and drinking all the time. It all makes sense now. Actually, just, in my mind, had this thought that, like, if I put up a a poll on the Facebook or something that said, which of the following five reasons would keep you from becoming a monk? And it's like a 100%

not podcast ready answer. And the other there's like one guy who's like, I don't know. I'd like to accessorize, and I couldn't take it. Everyone else is like, I wanna be part of the sweet and dirty. And I couldn't give it up. Outreach There's to it. You know what I'm saying? You're like, my room clean already.

And we just dirtying these dishes and cleaning them again. And like, we never go out and say, hey. You guys should know about this great great Jesus I know. I did I'd do it for a week. Yeah. It feels like it'd be good for you for a week. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Maybe a month. I think I'll do it for a month. Yeah. Monk month. I also thought I I I plan to do this this year, and I didn't pull it off. And maybe it also could be because it's dumb. But I had in my mind that, like, what if you tried to center your life upon the the sun for, a week or something? Like, you got there's a book. Hold on. Dan goes, I'm

listening to that guy. Depends on what time of year you're talking. It's it's Winter or something. How people, you know, did it for thousands of years. It's it's a fairly modern in fact, the alarm clock is only what? 75 years old or something. Like this belief that you create artificial light in your house to keep you up longer than your than the normal rhythms around you. Alarm clocks to jolt you. Like, need this because you stopped using the sun. And so, in fact, did did you read Mike, did you read that Pray Like Monks book? You know I didn't. No. What? Are you sure? I thought you might have read that one. Uh-uh. Okay. Anyway, it's they were kinda talking about that. And so I thought, like, I don't know. What if you what if you got up when the like, because the sun woke you up or something and you and then you you your life calmed down when the sun went down. Like, what would that do to your natural rhythms? And like, what could you you would probably sleep more for sure. But like You'd do something more. I mean, that's they had more children back then. Also, actually, I've often heard that like

in like the times when you were following the sun, you would go to bed earlier, but you also would wake up in the middle of the night. Like, the kids would sleep through the night, and the adults would be up for a couple hours in the middle of the night. They would they would And monopoly and stuff. And they would sweet and dirty, and then they would go to bed. This is this is overdone, though. Like, the torch has been around for thousands of years. People were doing candles. Yeah. But you right. But you didn't just burn, like, 50 candles so you could stay up five hours later. Like, they were they were more precious than that, except for the elites. They just burned candles like one time. Yeah. Yeah. That's true. Anyway, I just like, I thought, I don't know. What would it be like if you it would force you to to rearrange your life a bit because you couldn't actually pack it to the gills. You would be forced to to kinda calm down or whatever. Yeah. I but like, what what that would never fly. Right? Like, boss calls and goes, where are you at? You're like, I wake by the sun.

It wouldn't be Yeah. We pay by the hour, dude. It would be fine for my workday. Yeah? Maybe for yours. Yeah. It wouldn't work for me. Yeah. You're like, what's good for the goose is good for the gander. I'm the gander. That's because your your work hours are perverse. I mean, I gotta, like, shut off the headlights of my car? I'm like, sorry. It's not how the lord intended. I drive without them. Yes. Because you wouldn't be awake yet because the sun hadn't come up. Yeah. That's why I have sun darkening shades, so I I could I have a very small workday.

Yeah. See? I'd never know. We're having artificially make like, anyway, I'm just saying. I it occurred to me that I would be interested in trying it out. Hey. I'd be curious on the old complaint line, 51551700852. No call after dark. Pagan. I don't know. Have you ever tried intentionally to do something that felt like you were going back to a simpler time, and how did it go? Oh, yeah. Yeah. I think you do that on a cruise ship. You just keep the the shades open, and then you wake up when the sun gets there. So I'm going I'm going on a cruise. Yeah. With my wife for our twentieth anniversary here coming up in like a week or two. Oh, nice. And people keep going, oh, like, do you enjoy cruises? I'm like, no. Not particularly. I think my wife enjoys it except for it's a floating buffet. Yeah. And then I say Yeah. If you said, do you wanna go on a floating buffet for three days? I would say, yes, sir. Yes, sir. I do wanna do that. Yeah. Yeah. And so, like, nap when you want to and floating buffet. It's great. Sign me up. I lost, like, four pounds on art, but but I never took an elevator. Was going up and down flights of stairs all day long, so I I worked it off all day long. I felt better. It was it was a good I loved it. You were moving and I was moving and Yeah.

Yeah. Okay. Anyway, it's gonna be good. Alright. You're listening to Life From The Path. Here's we got going on the show this evening. First of all, the question Jonah is both to be greatly admired, Mike thinks in some ways Yeah. Of his faith. Yeah. Even though he's a stool. Yeah. He he's That's not the word I use. But Yeah. Something like that. So what what the British would say, to be honest with you. Okay. So we're gonna talk we're gonna talk a little bit about that. Yeah. The faith of Jonah. Yeah. Also,

speaking of going back to cutting the things out, Mike's in a fast. And You can't be telling everybody. Yeah. Man, it's worthless now. Yeah. What's wrong with you? You gotta well, at least guys it. You were like, let's say Mike Enjoy every word, Mike. Okay. Sorry. Nathaniel's in a fast. And his question is Nathaniel says, look. I'm trying to give up I'm trying to give up some sort of habit. There. See what I did, Mike? This is terrible.

Coming up. I've I some sort of habit, And but I'm a chew gum instead. And so is that wrong? Do you do you have to give it up straight up? Is it replacing the holy spirit to say, look, I depend on the lord, but I still swapped it out? Yeah. Yeah. Or if you're trying to give up sodas, okay to drink coffee, or do you have to cold turkey the thing or it don't work? Yeah. Does the Lord only love you through water? Because if that's true, I feel like I hate water so much. And, like, when Moses hit the rock, I'd be like, I'll wait for the next rock. Maybe it's Shasta. Take the teacaps, please. I've recently tried to give up energy drinks, and I switched to sodas. Why? Regular sodas. Why are you trying to give up the energy drinks? It's too much caffeine. Oh, okay. Not because they're spendy? Well, they are spendy. Yeah. They're they're mega like, they're they've gotten out of control. Yeah. Yeah. But, also, I did the math one day, and it's like, I'm getting

close to a gram of caffeine a day. Yeah. And that's no no good. Yeah. It feels bad. Yeah. Agreed. Okay. Alright. Your heart's gonna be happy if you stop that. That's what I'm saying. Yeah. I gotta switch to the regular soda. Like like Mountain intended. Like Mountain Dew. Yeah. So so I suppose, like, it goes, would you accept this same rationale if you were like, I'm at I'm at two smacks of cocaine a day, and you're like, well, cutting her down to one. Praise Jesus. No. But that's not the same. We're not saying, hey. Yeah. You're just you're you're saying, like, instead of smacks of cocaine, I'm taking up cigarettes. I'm swapping snorting rock candy. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. And I'm I'm going down to Bronson's. I'm ripping heaters. Yeah. We'll rip heaters to get off the cocaine. Is right. Is that trusting in Jesus, or is that like a very human method of trying to cut something out? Because that feels like something someone could prescribe if you didn't know Jesus. I don't like the way you're framing it because I really am having a hard time seeing my side on this Well well, okay. So

so I think the risk is on the other side of it is you go, look, the only way to stop terrible behavior is to completely cold turkey it, and if you have faith you will succeed, if you don't have faith you will not succeed. Because I've heard it kind of framed in that way. That also seems unhealthy to me. Because like should I have the expectation that Jesus will always and easily take away anything that hinders my walk with him or the health of my body? Yeah. No. Yeah. Because Maybe wrong to two for one

like I always was like, I've had been approached to do a fast before and they're like, you gotta approach something. You know? You have you need to fast something. You know? And I I'm like I always like to fast the thing that I should quit anyway Uh-huh. For my health. Know what saying? It's bad. Yeah. It's a two for oner, I think. You know? I'll just I'll fast this. You know? And so but part of part of that seems disingenuous. Like the fast is

more like of a like I use it to like focus on a thing that God is is is asking me to do or like even just like a reorientation of my heart, like a refocus on on God, on the things that the on the way that my life is founded. And so, like, it seems odd to be like, and while I'm at it, I'm a quit smoking. You know what I'm saying? Or and while I'm at it, I'm gonna get off energy drinks. Instead of going, look, I'm gonna fast. Like, Dan always like one time said he fasted ice or something. And I thought that's so great because it's inconvenient, really inconvenient, especially if you like to put ice in something. So I would look at the same situation and go, well, I could fast energy drinks, which I need to quit anyway.

That I should be trying to get off without this fast. Right? Or I could fast ice and then I just need to quit energy drinks because that needs to happen anyway. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, it feels weird to like package them up as a two for one. Well, think about this is is that if you did, a very basic fast that said, look, I'm just gonna not gonna eat for a day. You'd be you'd be skipping energy drinks. Yeah. For sure. You'd doing it anyway. So, like, that happens to be that selective But not but not cocaine. You know what I'm saying? Like that covers food and drink but you're like, I mean But I can have that now. I can rip eaters and shoot dope. You know what I'm saying? That one might be more of a heart issue. That's what I'm saying.

Yeah. Anyway, the the the question is without being, I I suppose, real legalistic about it, but, like yeah. So, like, mine is actually I've been I've been chewing on mints. Yeah. Nathaniel's having to chew on mints. Yeah. It's but Nathaniel's on the mints. Let let's Nathaniel's got a ripping heater problem. And so and when the heaters aren't available, he's willing to stick just about any pouch worth of nicotine into his mouth because he's a pagan. And so, like, he's he's like, I gotta get off these things. So he institutes a fast for other reasons. But like, I'm like at the same time, maybe it's time to cut these. Like we need get rid of some idols in our lives. So I think, well, maybe the right thing to do is have some mints around because I know what it's like to try to get off some of this stuff. And so we're just gonna keep these mints for trying to help with the habit part and then fast

food and drink as normal. And then I thought, man, am I sinfully taking in these mints? Are they like cheating my fast by keeping these mints around? That's basically the question. First of all, it's me. Two, it's ripping heaters. And three, the food and drink thing is not as big of a deal, but like I kept some mints around because I'm like, I could get off these things and I won't make it without I just don't think I'd make it without them. So is that a lack of faith? Is it practical? Is it like, hey. You know, you're trying to do a couple things at once here. Maybe I shouldn't have put them together. I don't know, Nathaniel, Since this is your problem, what do you think? I've never tried quitting heaters before.

I figured I just might as well stay on them. Just kidding. That it didn't ring. Probably would. Anyway. I don't rip heaters. I was just joking. Yeah. It seems alright to me Yeah. Without a second thought. Yeah. Without going super parasitical on the thing. Well, it seems like, you know, you're you're already doing a fast. Double them up.

Yeah. Stick them in there. Suck a suck a mint down. They're spicy. They're awesome. They are good mints, though. So I've I've always liked to do a partial fast. I'll I'll I'll do, like, a twenty four hour fast too or, you know, x number of days, whatever. But I like the partial fast so you can go longer. Mhmm. And and so just examining my own way of doing that is, like, I would say, I okay. No sweets. No meat. I'd I'd get, like, four or five things. No pop. But then all of sudden, I'm having onion rings four times a day. Yeah. Yeah. You know? And I'm like and I do that for forty days or something. I'd be like, okay. I'm killing myself. I like maybe that's not healthy. Yeah. So the next time I would adjust it and say, okay. No fried foods. And, you know, blah blah blah. And every

time I do it, I adjust that a little bit because I always look for that loophole of, like, I gotta find happiness somewhere. Yeah. You know? Right. Yeah. I've got I've got to find, you know, the fried pickle or or the mint or or something. And I suppose if you're, like, total purist, you'd be like, well, you know what? How about if I find happiness in my prayer time? That that'd be that'd be cool. Yeah. But but I don't think it's wrong. It's not, like, a bad thing or even a fail necessarily. I I think it's just knowing your presetting your boundaries. If you're not doing it halfway through the fast, that that that's different too. You've already set it up ahead of time. Here's what I'm allowing. Here's what I'm not allowing. Here's what I'm praying for. Here's how long I'm praying. Yeah. And and then, okay. So you picked some things that were healthier. I've just started over the years going more healthy. And like, I'm only eating, you know, lettuce or something. Yeah. Or whatever. Yeah. And I I think some you

it is not like, one, the effective of effectiveness of the fast is not correlated with suffering. And so so there's a caution that goes like, if I make it real like like God would then owes you whatever you may be petitioning or communicating simply because it was very very hard on you. Now sometimes those are the right things to to get at. Mhmm.

And the thing that forces you to examine yourself more thoroughly because it's not so easily skipped. But like, that's actually the right intention of the of the fast. Like, some of it's just an expression kinda like, you know, if you're mourning or something like that, it's like, I'm using my physical body to express some spiritual reality or something and on my out my are reflecting my enemies. That's fine. And then sometimes you're doing it as a petition. You're doing it simply to go, God, I feel like showing you honor and I'm gonna do so with this commitment or I'm asking for your specific attention. No different than anointing something like that. And like we don't go, it has to be the most expensive oil to anoint someone. Like that's not how it's measured. And so it really is a heart thing. And so like, if you're trying to scam your fast, and that's what how your heart feels about it, well, okay, then it's gonna be completely ineffective.

But I think the earnest heart that struggles with the presence of the question reflects it's probably fine. Yeah. Right? But if you're but if you're going if you're waiting for Lent to come around to go, this is I'm gonna fast German chocolate cake to see that Jesus. Where where's my bounty? Okay. You missed it. Yeah. And so I I I think the presence of the question means you're probably fine. I think it's also a good reminder to pray. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You pop a a little spicy boy in your mouth, you say, oh, time to pray. Yeah. Spice prayer. I I I had a kid ask ask me one time because I had a I had a pretty long running streak of where I would go up into town and I'd pray on a bench. And, like, they're like, why do you why do you pray on the bench? And I'm like, I don't know what else to offer him.

Like, if I'm being real honest, like, I could pray at my house. I'd say the same things. But, like, at the end of the day, I want to offer God something, and I don't know what else to offer him right now. And so this is just what I'm doing. Like, he gets my time and he gets my butt in a bench. And, like, you know, he's my dad. I think he'll take it well. I think he'll know what I'm trying to do, but, like, there's nothing special about that bench. You know? It's just a bench. But it's like, I just wanna offer God something. And my broken, you know, dude brain says, I'm a give you this time as this bench every day. What do think, dad? You know? He's like, that's cool, son. Like, when I look at a card, my six year old made me you're like, you guys put some time and effort into this? I love it. Thank you very much. You know? Yeah. Yeah. So it reminds me of I read this thing the other day, and it was it was kinda like a don't if it was a written thing or just like a quote from Kurt Kurt Vonnegut, the author. And he was this is gonna you're gonna have a hard time why I'm telling you the story, but I'm gonna connect it. I promise. But anyway, he's telling this story about how, like, he needs a stamp. And he's like his wife said, hey. Why don't you just buy a book of stamps? He's like, I don't wanna buy a book of stamps. I wanna go travel to the post office and buy a stamp. And then I wanna see a fire truck go by, and I wanna give them a thumbs up. And I wanna see ladies walking dogs, and I wanna talk to the dog like it's a human, and then I wanna talk to the lady afterwards. And he goes, we're made to kind of fart around. Like, that was that was his description. And

so one, I really liked that. Like, yes, you could totally stock up your place so that you're prepared for anything in your house, or you could walk around and experience the world. And like, the thought of this guy's like 75 years old. The thought of him walking out, buying one stamp, watching a fire truck go by, and then giving a thumbs up to the dudes. Yeah. I'm like, I I really love that. There's something, like, very I I connect with it. So but but anyway, I I think about the bench and, like like, this is all we have. I I I have an earthly existence. I this is the only thing I have to express myself. The only thing I can offer. I I can't magically create things. God obviously has everything at his disposal. And so if I say, what do I have? I have my temporal time and space. I have the body that he's put at my discretion. And what I can do is I can lug it up to a bench at 06:00 in the morning and go, yep. Yeah. I'm experiencing driving up here and sitting at a bench. I'm experiencing I think about this every time it comes up for like, for a prayer room. Yeah. You can pray at your house, but, like, whatever. I just intentionally went here. Are prayers more valuable here? Not necessarily,

but I participated in something of intent, and I took part in that. And I went I was I was talking to a guy this last week, and he about he about misadmise because there was something that had that had gone on in his life,

and he had he had been in kind of particular danger to himself. And I had gone up to visit him after

after the event had happened. And he had said, like, I don't know I don't know what something he said was like, I don't know where I would be or something like that if I'd not come. Now here's the thing. I'm not telling you that story because of Mossop. I often don't know how to behave in these situations. And I remember I had said that to him when I went to visit. I went up there, and like a couple of the people had come up, but it was more like, hey, don't we're angry with you for doing a thing. And I think I sat in there and I said, dude, I don't I don't I don't know what to say here. I'm I'm here because I I care about you. I love you. And other than that, that, I don't have any words for you or anything. And like even ten years out or I don't know however long ago it was,

I actually still don't know what to say in all kinds of situations. I don't have wisdom. I'm good at like long narrative conversations weaving through topics. I'm in a moment where someone needs you to say a precise word. I am not the man for this situation. But the point was is that like, no, it didn't that I was there. That's it. I hauled my white pasty cheeks up to this hospital room and sat with the dude and didn't had no idea what to say. And that was the thing that mattered to him. And I couldn't have told you it mattered, actually. I I would I would have walked going, I don't know. I think this is what I can do. And that was it. And so I tell you that the reason it gives me the old misty eyes is to think that like God had used whatever fallibilities I have in such a way that felt like totally loser ish that like I don't even know what to do here and it mattered for presence and that's it. And so anyway, I say that to say like

farting around with your body and showing up to a place and sitting on a bench because you're like, I don't know. Yes. Practically, I could do all kinds. Practically, you should buy the book of stamps. Practically, you could pray at your house and not have to be absent your family, which sounds like a totally responsible thing to do is go like, why do you keep leaving the house in the morning? You sat on a bench. I'm just saying, like, there's something about, like, just participate in your existence, and it's gonna be all kinds of things that don't add up to did I most efficiently use my time. I think that's sometimes the wrong measure. Well, first I like, I I think I was I was teaching through this sometime, and, like, god is the opposite of efficient. Totally. Totally. Nothing he does can be nailed down to be like, that was the most efficient way to get it done. You know I'm saying? Like, I and it's always multiple things at once. And, like, he'll send you to Calcutta and over to Ohio and then back back down to Belize. He's like, we could have just gone right to the end. He's like, yeah. I had some plans in the middle there that we had to get done. So no problem. Efficiency is not what we're after. And think about even if if the trajectory of the life of David. Right? Like, a god god obviously wants him to become king. He chooses him as king, and then he's not actually king for years. Mhmm. And then he's king of half the place, and then he's king of the whole place. And then his son runs him out, and he doesn't get to be king for a while after that. And then he gets to come back. And, like, there's lessons in there for him. There's lessons in there for the nation. And, like, if God wanted to just make sure, here's the guy I want, I want him to stay king, he totally could have done that. But like the end wasn't necessarily the issue. Like the means mattered,

the lessons that were involved in it, the way of which God like his character is revealed through all these different mechanizations in the world. Like, and so it it is like protecting the end. Oh, this is gonna lead into the thing I wanted to talk about Israel. But, like, trying to protect the end reality is the blindness. Mhmm. And, like, all you the best you can do is fart around and participate. And I know that doesn't sound like a Christian bumper sticker. I'm just saying, like, I get what am I gonna do? I'm a go fart around at the bench and pray to the lord Jesus. Like, I don't know. I'm gonna lumber my bones up there and do it. Mhmm. And so, anyway, I I don't know what that means to you. Maybe if you think maybe you just pray about it, and you can swap out the word if you don't like it. I I get it. But, like, God, how how do I use this collection of stuff that you gave me to go do something that is honoring to you that, you know, that shows up in a scenario of which just the presence matters even if you don't know what you're doing at all. Like that stuff is perfectly okay. It's perfectly fine. And oftentimes it's the only thing you could offer and it was probably the right thing. Yeah. Seems like we talked about that like a hundred years ago just as a flashback of like that that just there's so much power in the mundane

Yeah. Of of living out our faith Yep. That we're not thinking that anything's happening and but so much is often. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. God is moving and all that. Yep. And like actually, so I remember I think this is cyclical prayer for me because like I can so easily get pulled away not even like doing the wrong things but doing nothing. And it's so crazy to me to think that that could possibly be true but like even, but there's even things where like it's very humbling. Every once in while someone said, look, you guys were talking about this thing on your show and I'm surprised on a couple of levels.

And like something mattered and I look around and like this is the ultimate fart around this joint. Yeah. Just totally is. And like every once in a while there's something redeemable about it. And actually I I was really good at this for a number of years. And then I think I I I stopped because I got to thinking about other things on the drive in. But like I always used to like, Lord, I don't know. Just if you, if there's something to be done with it, great. If it's something for us, fine. Just use it, use it in some way or another and refine us where we're not getting it right or something like that. And so, but we keep doing it because something feels like, I don't know. There's something going on. I'm dude, I'm super I'm pumped. We get to see Nathaniel all night. Nathaniel goes to bed early. Yeah. So, like, we are totally, like, jacking up his week probably. He's still gonna get up butt early I'm

not. I'm off work. Oh, rise. Freedom. Okay. We caught him on the right night. The kid is back. He does. Glory be. You'll rise with the sun. I will. No. He's gonna wake me up. He's gonna yeah. Right. Kid's gonna get up. He's gonna get up early. So anyway, I just, you know, if it's any encouragement, like, some of it's gonna feel like, I don't know. Why would I why would I do this thing or that thing? I don't know. Mhmm. But maybe do it. Just see. And be alright with it. And maybe maybe you're the person on the other side of a relationship where you're like, that guy's always farting around.

Like, and or I don't understand it. I'm just like, maybe have some grace for it. Maybe it's okay. Maybe it's doing things you don't understand. It's not always practical. Yeah. I think we're I'd rather air on the side of, hey, man. That guy's got some weird stuff I think he's doing, like, intentionally for Jesus opposed to that guy's doing nothing. Yeah. Yeah. He's just sitting around with his thumb in his in his moneymaker and doing zero things. So, like, we're gonna we don't need that.

Every every once in a while, I I wish I had the time to go back and edit the program. There's very few things I cut. I hey. That's it's

not classy, but, I mean, it's not offensive. Think it's the end part, Mike. Under his moneymaker or something. Maybe. Man. Boy. Alright.

Grateful to be on the Internet. Hashtag they allow everything. You've listening been to Live From The Path. Alright. So I'm gonna hit on this just real quick. I'm gonna tell you this. Just because it's it's becoming more prevalent in the things that I'm seeing online Because you're supposed to be stopping reading. What? Was it did I say that? Did I agree to that? Yes. I heard about it fast. Is was I supposed to be fast? Shoot. Okay. That's what I heard. I don't remember that. I don't remember saying that. What if I read the newspaper? Is that alright? I thought about picking up a paper. Analog? Yeah. I said I'm on my phone too much. I'm gonna sit on

break at work, and I'm gonna read I'm gonna read the Liber Rag. Yeah. I'm gonna take it in. Do they still make those? They did. I see it at when I stop at the Quickstar for my energy drinks, I say, I'll pick up a paper. And I look at the front page, I always put it right back down. I say, I'm not gonna buy this. Do you feel like you'd have to have at least two papers?

Like you'd have to get the local register and also the USA Today? I I could see myself this being a problem. Yeah. I don't know. Maybe I could I don't okay. I didn't did I say I was gonna do that though? No. But you've been hinting that this is you've this has been too much in your life forever, and you have yet to do anything about it. So I guess today's the day of reckoning. Yeah. Okay. You should be a paper man. I'm gonna pick up rip ripping heaters. I can't Pick up ripping heaters? If I can't Read the paper. Here's actually, I did think about taking up a pipe

for the purposes of just slowing like, forcing a slowdown. It seems Sounds like the guy that takes mitts to his fast. You're like, instead instead of actually slowing down, I'm gonna get this pipe, and it'll force me to do it. I think an ice cube would do the same thing. Just like an ice cube. I I got bad teeth. Damn. Oh. Oh. Yeah. A pipe will fix that. Think I think the pipe targets the throat.

Okay. Anyway. Anyway. Here's the only thing I'm a tell you. The the your current nation state of Israel is not the people of Israel. And this is gonna hit all of you. Some of you are gonna hit really funny. But one, your support of the particular nation state of Israel that currently exists is not your support of bringing the end times to fruition. It's not necessary,

and everyone gets to heaven and gets, like, to forever with Yahweh in the same way, and that's through Jesus. And the way the New Testament talks about Israel, like you get John will say in Revelation, not all Israel is Israel. Paul also talks about this and like I get that this feels like, especially to you, if you're of the messianic Jewish situation,

you would call this replacement theology. You're talking about it quite, like, incorrectly. Israel has always been the definition as God's people, and that understanding extends. That's what the grafted branch becomes

under Jesus. And so I just I want you to be careful of trying to feel like you're participating in some sort of political or end times or cultural or whatever in your full throated support of Israel. I I the the situation that's over there is much more complicated than that. There are people Jesus loves the Palestinians,

and you don't just you don't have God's favor just because you're in a nation state that was created in 1948. And so whatever. I you go ahead, and you can send it to the complaint line if you want to. I I'm I may not be able to talk you out of view. I'm just telling you that, like, be cautious of getting caught up in some of those things. Recognize that that everyone gets forever with Yahweh through Jesus. There is no special route that goes around that. And I I would the mixture of some of the political, especially worldly political stuff, and this has been true in America for quite a while, which, like, there's some investment, one, of Israel as a democracy, but also, I think there's a belief that there's some sort of, like, Christian support with that nation state. And, like, it's not I I that's not biblically sound. And so I I'd just be very, very cautious in there. It will blend some things, and it will become very dangerous, and frankly, will start to pervert the message of Jesus. So just be careful in there, and whatever. Talk to your pastor. Yeah.

Just, okay. I don't follow political events nor, am I very good at this area at all. But it would seem to me that when Israel acts in a way in the Old Testament, that was against, what Yahweh had asked them to do, then Yahweh let them be taken over by other people For sure. And got themselves in some kind of exile until they decided to turn their act around. Yeah. And so I would submit that that even whether you believe that the if you believe the nation state of Israel is is is like God's chosen people, the some of the actions coming out of that camp are not a reflection of Yahweh's

character nor are they a continued, like, bringing in that faith. And so, like, I'd have a real hard time finding that Yahweh's looking at that nation state's behavior and going, this is a good reflection of me. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good it's a good point. And I think I frankly, I think that whole thing super messy. I think you're probably not getting a fair shake from from the media across the board.

I think there's like a lot of things that go into kinda describing that Middle East situation. But the thing is just like Yahweh's people are not a democracy. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? That's the that's the broad point. So, like, whatever things you might tussle with about whatever the current situation is, yes, broadly, they are not like, peoples are not and that the nation structure is not to be protected at all costs under some sort of religious justification. Yeah. Like, Jesus god Yahweh runs a benevolent dictatorship. Like, that's the government structure under Yahweh. Yeah. It's not a democracy. We like that because we're a democracy, and we're like, hey. There's someone like us. We're best friends. Yes. But, like, that's obviously not the way Yahweh's chosen economy of people work. Yes. And the ends don't justify the means. Like you can't just say, hey, because we think there's God's protection over here or

we wanna make sure the place gets calms down so we can rebuild the temple and sacrifice the heifers, whatever is it you think is gonna go on. The the ends don't justify the means. You can't just do whatever you want to outside of Yahweh's character in an attempt to restore that. God will restore it. Like, he's gonna restore that, I'm not I don't think it's necessary for his return. But, like, even if he were to do something like that, he can do it without otherwise perverting his character to do so. And so I just just be careful. I'm not proclaiming to explain what that whole mess over there that it will take forever to sort out. I'm just telling you, like, to the extent that it gets intertwined like that, be do not give blind support. It's not I don't give it to America. Don't give it to Israel. It doesn't belong your that that type of fealty and reverence does not belong to any particular nation. So just be careful. Yeah. Alright. You're listening to Life From The Path. Mike, talk to me about

so generally speaking, Jonah's a doofus. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Jonah's a doofus. God tells him do a thing. He doesn't wanna do a thing. He he decides to run as far as away as he possibly can go, the end of the earth from his perspective. Yahweh obviously continue wants him to do it. He doesn't he doesn't say, I'll find another prophet. He goes, I want you to do it. Gets in some sort of pickle. They figure out that his disobedience to Yahweh is problem that on the boat that he's on. He admits to as such. He basically wants I think wants to like just off himself. Yeah. He's like, I'd rather die Yeah. Than go do this thing. Right. Because in ultimate, basically he doesn't wanna go to Nineveh and tell them that Yahweh is offering repentance because he doesn't wanna see them repent. He he wants to see them judged.

And so he refuses, ends up being tossed aside, is rescued by this whale, gives I I think what is ultimately some sort of half hearted position or petition to Yahweh, finds himself rescued. Of which he does not repent. No. He's just like, you are great. Yes. You will get me out of this mess I'm in. Yes. There you It's a very, like, posturing situation, but he doesn't actually do that. Gets vomited up, goes to Nineveh,

gives a half hearted, like, a warning to the Ninevites. Doesn't tell them what they did wrong. Doesn't tell them which god is particularly mad at them. Just go basically, this whole place is gonna be destroyed and stomps off. But but you're somewhere in here, Mike, you're saying that man's faith is to be envied. Yeah. Yeah.

Me about it. So like what was the reason why why Jonah did not want to go and tell the Ninevites that Yahweh has them under, like, rebuke? Isn't it because the Ninevites were

they're they're aggressive. They're cruel to the Israelites. Yeah. They were terrible. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. For sure. But, like, that's not generally the reason that, like, normally, you'd wanna run-in there and go, hey, by the way, Yahweh's coming, and you're gonna get everything you deserve. But but Jonah said, I didn't I don't wanna go do this. And what was he afraid of? He knew God would have mercy. He's afraid that God's gonna show up Yeah. And he's gonna provide mercy. Like, Exodus whatever 34, like, where where God describes himself. And he's like, I have steadfast love and I have mercy. Right? And so like, was teaching through this in youth group last week and I thought, here's the thing. Like, didn't even realize it. I was halfway through teaching it and I'm like, crap. Here's the thing. Of all the things that Jonah is Jonah, he is a he does not want the Ninevites to know Jesus. Like, the entire book of Jonah, it's not about saving the Ninevites.

Like, God could have gotten this done in any way capacity. Right? It's about his continued pursuit of Jonah and his continued pursuit of trying to mix between both his his divine justice and his divine mercy. And how sometimes like the like the second son in the prodigal son book, you know what I'm saying? In story where you're like, hey. Here's what I deserve. Here's what that guy deserves. And instead he got all this mercy. Yeah. But like the thing that Jonah's Jonah's faith allows, it was part of the argument that he has with with Yahweh after the whole thing said and done. He goes, I knew this would happen. I knew that if I went to Nineveh and offered them even he just told them they were under judgment, didn't explain anything else, and just said, you're under judgment by Yahweh, that they would turn and repent and you would forgive them because you are a merciful and generous God. Yeah. And I knew you would do this. And I thought, me and Jonah have two opposite problems. Jonah is afraid to go do something because he knows God is gonna show up.

And I spend most of my life afraid God isn't. Mhmm. Mhmm. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, Jonah is so sure that God's character and mercy and steadfast love is gonna show up. He would rather die in a boat than see these people come to know that type of repentance. He has a hate for the Ninevites, which he's not letting go and will ultimately just end up in him being a very frustrated angry man. Right? But like his faith was oriented in such a way that he was so concerned that Yahweh was gonna show up and do the thing he said he was gonna do. Yeah. Where my faith goes, I'm begging God to show up. I'm really unsure whether he's gonna do that. He might. You know what I'm saying? Like, this goes back to the conversation we've had a couple three weeks ago, and it's just continuing. Like like, how much to speak on behalf of the holy spirit or how much to you know what I'm saying? That that, like, I know God's character well enough from being in his word and being in relationship with him. But I

you know, like, if I was sent on the exact same mission, Mike, I want you to go to Somalia and I want you to go in the middle of the town and say, repent, please. The Lord Jesus has died for you. He loves you. He's paid all of your debt. Accept the gift and listen to me and I will tell you more about him. And I would be like, I hope the holy spirit shows up. Maybe it'll work. I'll just what I'm worried about is being faithful to the thing he called me to. Mhmm. Jonah is the exact He is not worried about being faithful to the thing that Yahweh has called him to

because Yahweh is gonna show up and do all the things. Yeah. And I am concerned with, well, I don't know if it's gonna work. God will do whatever he wants. As long as I'm faithful to what he asks, then we're good. And, like, I I thought, man, I I feel like he kinda rocks and and I suck at this. You know what I'm saying? At the comparison, he is concerned because he knows god's gonna show up. And I am concerned because I'm unsure of whether he's going to or not. Of course, in in his defense, God told him he was gonna showed up. So Yeah. I was gonna say that too. Yeah. Say what now? God God had told him he's gonna show up, so he knew God was gonna show up.

And God hasn't necessarily told you, hey. I'm gonna be in x town on x day. Okay. So to be fair, he told him that that, like, that the evil from Nineveh has come to his ears, and he's gonna put an end to it. To warn him. Yeah. He did not say that, like, I will forgive all these people, and they will turn to worship me. Okay. Yeah. So there's two things in there. The first is God's God's tangible action in any place, whether it's judgment or mercy. Okay. Fair. And Yeah. Yeah. So Jonah had an understanding that God was going to do something. That's right. And you had to trust that it was gonna happen. The second question then becomes is what does Jonah know of God's character? He knows that in the presence of justice, there will be an offer of mercy. If in the presence of repentance. And so I think Dan's point is salient in that like it often does feel like,

you know, are you getting is like, it's God saying, hey, go to the beach or go to Somalia. And like if that's although it is always it is inherently right to do so, it is not also specifically clear. God didn't say, I am definitely going to do this. And so there is some level of ambiguity in there that I think is understandable. But I think the point is still relevant though is like, is is there some encouragement in seeing someone go like, I know I basically,

I knew you would do this. I know how God That was his exact argument. He was indignant. I knew you would act this way. Yes. Yeah. Yes. Because think of all the places he did not mention. Yes. He could go to Nineveh. Yeah. Exactly. Like, I'm targeting Nineveh right now. It's like, crap. You're gonna do something. I don't wanna kill me now. I don't wanna go. I don't want anything to do with this. You know? Yeah. I I I suppose, like, from norm it's probably be like a a boomerang effect. Right? Like, as you grow up, you're like, Jonah's just this nice man, and God saved him with a whale, and he saved the sailors, and he's and and Nineveh repented, and then Jonah repented of his running in the first place. And then chapter four is just cut out. We're like, god, that didn't even happen. You know? And then so, like, then you you read it as an adult or you read it with with a, like, a a discernment

eye, and you're like, Jonah's a complete boob. Like, he didn't do anything he was supposed to do. The book ends with him, like, pouting outside of a town of a bunch of people who just repented and changed from their ways. Based on no effort of him, he half hearted the whole thing. And so like, know, Jonah, you really suck. And then only to step back from it for a minute and goes, like Jonah's faith and his knowledge of who Yahweh is and what his character was was so strong that he would rather die than let his God's mercy and redemption

flow on people he didn't like. So he was struggling with a legit thing. Right? Where does God's mercy and where does God's judgment, like, meter out? And how can you be so forgiving if you made a covenant with Israel that you were gonna protect us, and this nation state is constantly, like, abusing us, and yet you offered them repentance,

then, like, are you really protecting Israel? Like, Jonah's got some legit struggle in here. Okay. Fine. But, like, at the end of the day, it was never a question that God's character was going to be there. Yeah. And I thought, you know, I just I don't know that I walk so boldly. And I don't know that God has not acted in a way that I should be willing to walk bolder. Right? Like, his if I look back on my own life and the people around me, like, God has continually shown up. God has made his presence known. He has redeemed people around me. He has restored lives. He has healed people. He has done everything that he's ever said he was going to do. It does lack a like a real specific nuance sometimes that I want. Like, who's the guy that was sent to go, like, after Paul and be like, hey. I sent this guy at this house. Keep an eye on him. I know he was a bad dude, but whatever. He's gonna be fine. You know what I'm saying? Like real specific instructions. Yeah. Which which maybe I don't know that I get a whole lot.

But, like, it feels like Jonah fought and kicked and ran for thousands of miles and and and and on a tumultuous sea and would rather take death knowing that God is faithful. That's the reason. I've always had a hard time putting this in a contemporary mindset, you know? And and maybe with the last few years of history we've seen, maybe maybe it's close to it. Like like, because we just talked about Israel and stuff. Yeah. And and you go back to the

October situation of a couple years ago when they were like putting babies in microwaves and Oh, yeah. Totally. Yep. I mean, like, horrible things. Horrible things. Imagine being like a husband. Your children were killed and raped and tortured. Your your wife was killed in front of you, she watched them rape. You know, blah blah blah. You know, all the terrible things you hear happen. And then God coming to you and say, I want you to go into that group of people, and and they're gonna have revival and they're gonna have a great life. Yeah. And maybe that puts a bit of a like like, I'm not I'm even trying to pick sides on all the stuff. I'm just saying

that kind of stuff is happening. Nineveh was known for the absolute cruelty. Yeah. So it wasn't like, I just don't like them. It was like they they probably killed some of his relatives. For sure. You know? And and it was it was a hard thing. Me, I'm going like, well, course, it's it's the grace of God. I mean, you gotta go for the but I haven't had that happen before. Yep. You know? I would hope that I would respond with grace. I hope I never have to find out. Yeah. So so I I I don't get as hard on him as I I used to,

but he's still a disappointment. Yeah. Right. I think it's harder for us to take in because of our lack of conflict in that area. Right? Like, our our footing my whole life, my footing has been grace to people. Yeah. Not war, not judgment or condemnation because it's been unnecessary. They're not oppressing me. Yeah. You know I'm saying? So America, maybe Western civilizations is harder to to grasp. I mean, like, we've all heard Charlie Kirk was shot. Haven't met. He wasn't my friend. Yeah. Yeah. You you know? It's like, oh, wow. That that's kinda sent a shock wave. You know? But it's not like he wasn't my brother physical brother. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's it. I haven't had the the hardship that that that they most of the world has had. Mhmm. Yeah. Because our position is almost like there's like, you could explain it to me right now, and I would say our position is always grace. Cause that's what Jesus' position was, you know? But the truth is, is like I've never lived in the circumstances where I felt like I would prefer judgment.

Like that's not been my life. And so, know, I mean, again, I do get Jonah's struggle here But like even the

Israeli Palestinian thing, like, hey, look, you're gonna go in and talk to these people. And you're like, I'm not going because I know you're gonna try to forgive them. And the answer is no. I don't want them forgiven. And I'm like, I just because my thought is always, I really want people to know him, it's so foreign to me. It's very foreign. Yeah. Yeah. Can't grasp that. Doesn't matter what you did to me. You know? But like once again, that's said from a life of Western culture ease. So what do I know? You said a naughty word at me. That's the worst I've had. Yeah. Right. He made fun of me and said I sucked. And you're like, that's like half the county. So whatever. Right. Right. Yeah. You know what's interesting is that now that I think about if I relate

kind of his some of his reaction, I think about people who are like mad at God. Like, they're not Christians, but they're mad at God. And like, I sometimes your reaction is like, you don't even think he exists. Like, what are we doing? But the right reaction is like, you're halfway there, buddy. Like, you acknowledge

that there is a God and two, that he's got some level of like, he controls the thing. These are all right acknowledgements. Like trying to trying to come to a right understanding of his character and how and how to deal with that as a human. Okay, that's Jonah and reasonably Jonah. Because like a lot of times when people are mad at God, they're mad at God for the same reason Jonah's mad at God. Some human relationship or human circumstance that surrounds them did not go in a way that they wanted and not even particularly selfishly.

Mhmm. To to Dan's point, like the Indivites were terrible. They probably did murder part of his family or and like Israelites in general and like were harsh and cruel people. And so just the basic notion of justice goes, I don't want to see mercy extended here. And so if you think about some of the people who are like, you know who've got an anger at God, like you're probably taking it mostly correct. We just now let's kinda, we gotta take something a little bit more holistic than that. But like they would share that with Jonah and to a certain extent, there's an honesty in it that I don't know you could work with that's different than like don't just mock somebody and go, why do you don't even believe in God? I don't know. Maybe

they are grasping something even more than some shallow Christian faith is. They tangibly think God is responsible. This is correct. Now how do we actually render the world around us as opposed to like some platitudinal relationship with a way of life that doesn't actually acknowledge God as sovereign, it doesn't actually acknowledge God as responsible,

sometimes their faith is actually stronger than some professing Christians. Mhmm. Yeah. I I never have real I don't I don't know that I've ever thought of it as what you just said too of that Jonah could have been angry at god too. Sure. Like, hey. You said you'd bless us. Right. And these guys are are terrorizing us. Yep. And now you're telling me to go bless them. Mhmm. Yeah. It's like, you know, that's that's an extra interesting twist. Yeah. You made a covenant with us, bro. You know? Yeah. You know what's interesting? Jonah Jonah as like a figurehead for like, I don't know, all most modern critiques

of the Bible as probably not too far off. Because like you could reasonably look at like all the promises God has made to Israel Uh-huh. And to his people in general especially some of these like I will you know this covenant is forever and everlasting covenant and blah blah blah. And like I will do this thing and that thing. And you're like where do I see these things to fruition? God constantly seems to be taking pit stops and extending grace and divvying out things that otherwise drive repentance because

we look at those, some of those promises in Scripture. I think it's a wrong way to look at it, like totally common is to go, this is the end. God is hurrying his people to this end and so that the end result can be maintained. But to the point of David's conversation from earlier and sitting on a bench and like all the things is that like God doesn't actually necessarily function that way. And we know that even without the New Testament. We can see it, to example, in Jonah's existence where like how can I see this as blessings to the people of of Abraham and to this nation that comes when God seems to be blessing other people even people who would otherwise harm you know Abraham's offspring? Okay. Well, I mean, the Bible's not hiding that story, and so which means we have to be able to take it contextually indifferent than maybe what we supposed it to be. Alright.

You're listening to Life From The Path. Here's the thing. If you've not read Jonah lately, especially if you're an adult, take another cut at it. I just think I there's something so I don't know. Like, it just turns all the lights on. Like, it's such a basic story you learn when you're younger. And just to read it in, I think it just it amplifies scripture holistically. I think it kindles an interest that if you feel like you're disinterested or you're also familiar.

Just, in fact there was a guy who I was talking to, it had been a number of months ago and he was starting to connect with faith. His kids were getting curious. He hadn't have a particularly like Christian household or anything and that was my recommendation. I'm like regardless of how close you were, if you grew up in the faith or whatever, you have a rough idea what Jonah's about.

Now just go read it as an adult and see all the bells and things that turn on and the things it's causing you to think about, and like, and then frankly I think it will help you go start to relook at other parts of scripture and go, Oh, is, like these are people and these are interesting situations and they are big questions and like now how do I think about it? I just think Joan is a very good book for that. I think like all of the bible stories that you learned growing up, you should go back and read as an adult if you haven't. Yep. Because it it it is absolutely shocking. Like, read about Solomon, read about David, read about I mean, all of them. Yep. You know? Because it's it's like we get the the really fluffy, happy version as children because most of you know, we can't handle the stuff that actually happened. Right. Yeah. Yeah. The guy was on the toilet and took a knife and stuffed it and, you know, stuffed it in his gut so far that he was so fat. He was sticking. I mean, it was just like, what? Oh god. Now little Jimmy, let me tell you about the concubines on the roof. Yeah. Like, alright.

Alright. Have you heard Tim Mackie's three part series on Jonah? Yes. It rips. It does rip. It is super good. From the My Strange Bible podcast? Yeah. Yeah. I was literally just listening to that on the drive in. It rips. Yeah. Yeah. It's very, good. Yeah. You're into podcasts. Yeah. Yeah. That's if you wanna check that out, go to just look for My Strange Bible. Yeah. It's the first ones. It's like the first three episodes in that podcast are

are that. And actually, when I was talk the the guy was talking about just a minute ago, that's I sent him to that. I said, hey. Look. You should read Jonah and, like, if you need a a reference, just, listen to this guy talk about it will help. It help you orient yourself in a way that maybe you hadn't thought of it before. Yeah. Yeah. It's super good. Did I get did I hey. I can't remember. Have we been on here? Did I tell you about seeing the Bible Project guys live? Yeah. Okay. You said he was cool. Yeah. It was cool. He was like a celebrity. Did I talk did I talk about it on the show though? I I don't think so. Well, if I didn't, so it was it was this was at the Hutch boot conference. This thing was like made for me, be honest with you. Like the Josh Garrels was performing Friday night at this thing,

and and then Saturday Saturday the guests were the, like, the Bible project dudes. And I thought, oh, cool. Like, what are they gonna speak about? And here's here's what I what I really loved is they did the same thing they always do. Like, these two dudes didn't show up and put on some sort of like TED talk or something. They got up there and they just started talking about scripture. And like they're sharing Tim Mackie's like sharing his computer screen and he's it's one of the Psalms. He's got one of the Psalms written out and then he's just like dissecting it. Like like you would. Like here's a Bible. We're gonna study the Bible. And so he starts to do that he and goes, now let's look at Genesis, I think two or three or something, and like, look at the connection between this thing. And like, it's just two guys and a laptop and dissected scripture. Mhmm. And I I was just I don't know. Of all the things that they could do to because they're going to a conference, and they could do something special, they just did what they always do, and they both sat up there and talked about scripture. I'm like, this is I love this. It made me so very happy. And they were super cool.

I go I got to talk to him for just like thirty seconds or whatever, but Tim Eckie was super cool. So anyway, I just it was just neat to see, like, there's the thing that you would expect to happen. It's kinda like the show, to be honest with you. Like, this is what we do. It's what we would do if we showed up somewhere else to talk, and we would do the same thing. Did they go be like, hey. Are you Ben Fussed from the Life From The Path? They did not mention it. Although I had I had reached out to the other guy, the John John Collins, and offered to I'm a business architect for my job. And like, it it serves no practical purpose for the rest of the world. And I thought, hey, man. They're like a growing nonprofit. And I said, look.

I I do business architecture. If you need help, I will do this for free. I will fly out on my own dime if I can be of any help to you. I'm just trying to figure out how to take this like existence I have that is not valuable Yeah. Outside of of stupid my my skill set that you have. This is what I'm saying. Yeah. And say, can I put it to some dang use somewhere? Somewhere in the kingdom. Yeah. And so I had offered and like the guy had like, this is on LinkedIn and he had he had read it and then did not respond to me. And so so anyway, after after this conference, this Hutchinson conference, like, I messaged him that night and said, hey. Just you guys, it was great. Thanks for we appreciate you. You know? My daughter and I were there or whatever. And he actually read it and responded to me. Oh. And I said, okay. At least he did not mention that I might be of any help to their organization.

I'm like, I promise you, I'm not asking for a job. I'm not asking you to hire me. This isn't like some subversive way to get a job that I would probably dissuade you from hiring me. As a matter of fact, I'm probably too expensive. But like generally speaking, if I can be of any help, would still love to be I want to put my skills to some use. Yep. Too late. Nope. Nope. It didn't he did not offer You might be acceptable in Portland. Yeah. You know I'm saying? Like they have big money big money in salaries in Portland. That's true. They might be like, this is nothing money for me. I have heard people who do my job who like help like third world organizations like just level it up so they can do the things. I'm like, I just hate all of this. I you know, I'm not proud of my work necessarily. And like I it just feels like of trying to push it back in. When frankly, I'd rather go in and help them harvest or something where I feel like I'm using my hands and being productive. But whatever. It's what I have. It's what I have available to me. I'm pretty good at it. And so I'm I don't know. Can we get any use out of it at all? You're listening to live from the Path. Thanks for hanging out with us so far tonight. We do very much appreciate it. If you have any thoughts on the show either so far or maybe you're listening live and you wanna predict, hey. I think it's gonna go downhill from here. Go ahead and hit up the complaint line. (515) 517-0085. Call or text. We'd love to hear from you. Also, still open call if you want to be a beta tester on the live from the PAP PAPH mobile app.

I I am curious to see how far you're getting on the old thrift store hoops. Yeah. I can get to level eight on thrift store hoops. I talked to a gal a couple days ago, and she just freaking spanked. I mean, she's good at it. Yeah. She claims to be just totally awesome. Said it's super easy. It's not that big of a deal. I don't wanna name any names, but I feel like they're really boastful about their thrift store preskills. I'm saying there's a share button in that game, and so I'd like to start seeing some shares. Yeah. Proof or it didn't happen. Yeah. That's right. Give me the give me the specs on how how well you're doing secular Solomon or how well this thrift store hoops is happening again. The game when the game's over, you think it'd be wrong to have that thrift store priest ripping a heater? But, like, he did pretty good. He just starts smoking? Yeah. Yeah. He's a thrift store priest. You know what I'm saying? He's not a high end priest. Yeah. Yeah. He's done with the common folks. It's true. I don't know if the I don't like, is it possible that middle aged monks were smoking tobacco? Well, listen.

When did people start smoking? Were there biblical smokers? I think it was from The Americas. Yeah. You think that's brand new. People smoking the hashish hanging around them. Yeah. Yeah. What about the left handy, the the the sweet leaf, Nathaniel? Not tobacco.

I think it's isn't that also a a native to The Americas? You're saying people never rolled anything and smoked it prior to the until America was discovered? I the I mean, the native Americans were doing it the whole time. Ain't that wild to think that no one else in the world will pull this together and they're like, the Navajo are like, hey. We we figured this out. So we're we're ripping heaters, brothers. Wait. Wait. So you think the the okay. The Europeans land in America and go, well, hot dang. Look at that. They'll roll that up and light it a fire. Yeah. Why? And they brought it back. You don't think there was a pipe smoking over there there in England? Oh. No. The climate's not right for growing tobacco over there. Yeah. What about in India where they do tea? You know that's gotta be tobacco. They were smoking tea? I don't know. I have no idea. Smoking tea seems wrong.

I why? What do you mean? You roll up some tea and smoke it? Yeah. That's what made Earl Grey. Five one five five one seven zero zero eight five. Okay. Hey. Let's give we're doing alright here. Let's give up some advice, and we'll we'll split it up. Dear, life from the path. Yes. My son-in-law says I am lazy and antisocial

because I use the drive up grocery option. I told him that I use the drive up. I do less impulse buying and save time and money. Am I wrong? Wow. I mean, you can't This is the whole question. You can't you can't fart around at the drive through. My son-in-law says I'm lazy and antisocial because I use the drive up grocery option. Yeah. I've never thought a thing one way or another about the drive up grocery people in line. I just drive past them and go and be social. But Do you ever place an online order and then go pick it up? I never have.

Well, once I figured out that you can have your stuff delivered, I mean, that's just the whiz bang in this thing. I don't trust people to, like, pick out my tomatoes. Oh. I I I'm I'm gonna pay I always screw it up. Yeah. Yeah. This is not my but now granted, I live twenty five minutes away from a grocery store, so I don't care. You know what I'm saying? I'm willing to take some slings and arrows for not having to drive an hour round trip to the grocery. I bet I do, like, 90 of our grocery shopping, and I I like to touch it. I like to feel it and smell it, squeeze it. Yeah. This is an intense trip to the to the grocery store. It's a good time. Just shake it around a little. You can judge me how you want. Look. Boy RD right in the eye. What's in your pasta?

I don't know, Nathaniel. Do you do you think is there something virtuous about attending the aisles? I no. I think that I think this young lady or old woman, depending on whatever she is, she it's a woman? I thought you said Yeah. I assumed. Son-in-law. I thought it was a dude. Okay. Go ahead. I think there's something that's not being said here. I think this lady

or man is probably antisocial, and that was just the thing that the son-in-law hung his hat on. There's not enough evidence based on using the online pickup grocer No. That you were antisocial. Exactly what happened. He went to their house, and she made guacamole, and it was, like, choppy. It was it was chunky. It wasn't soft. They they they did not get an appropriate avocado

Mhmm. Because they just had some high school kid Mhmm. Working Mhmm. Put it in the bag. And he's like, you're just being antisocial. Yeah. Go in there and pick your own avocados. Yeah. You did this to us with your behavior. Yeah. Dan knows it. Mean, he he's got like a sixth sense for these kind of things. I do. I do. He's lived a life. He's got a chunky avocado. Some fresh garlic. Yeah. I don't like the I don't like the online pickup.

You like to go in? I like to go well, also, to be fair, to be fair, my wife is doing, like, 97.8% of the grocery shopping. But do you like to go in so that you can impulse buy? Yeah. That's why I like to go in. Yeah. I like to go in. I like to look I was never worried about it unless I walk by. Yeah. I can't have FOMO if I don't know about it. The woman says I add at least a $100 to our trip to the store. Yeah. So I'm not allowed in there. Yeah.

I probably do the same thing. Although, I don't like, I mean, I'll I'll buy random I'll buy random stuff every once in a while, but I also will go in and, like, I just buy things I recognize because I'm like, we we probably need it. And so I'll just pick it up. Like Star Crunches. No. Not Star Crunches. Garlic power powder. No. We're probably particular about that. Depends on the store. Actually, you can't send me in a here's what I'm a sucker for. I'm a sucker for the changing of the seasons and the stuff at the Trader Joe's.

They they put out all kinds of like, hey. It's the new fall foods. I'm like, I will try every one of them. You got some new like squash for farfall. I want it. Even though I probably won't even like it. No. Yeah. I like to reinvent myself when I go to the store. Like I look at them and I think I could be a bagel person. Maybe I'm gonna get up and have bagels every day. And then I literally get one bagel in. I'm like, this takes a lot of time. I'm probably not a bagel kinda guy. Oh, yeah. I do that every once in a while. I go like, I'm gonna make I'm gonna make burritos for the whole week, and I'll do it too. I'll get, like, a pepper and an onion and some chicken to cook up or whatever and some pepper jack cheese. And I'm like and so I do it. I'll go up and I'll make, like, four burritos. I'll eat them four days in a row. There's, like, eight ounces of chicken on this thing. It's a protein central,

and then I won't do it again for six months. Yeah. I don't build habits. Okay. So overall, we're saying I mean, it's possible you're lazy and antisocial, but just using the pickup grocer is probably not enough evidence to condemn you. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. A hung it's a hung jury. So says,

of course, you are not wrong. What you are doing works for you, and you shouldn't be criticized for it. That's dumb. Yeah. It is dumb. That's not a good excuse to do anything. Ask yourself why your passive aggressive son-in-law feels the need to put you down. He doesn't seem passive aggressive. He seems aggressive aggressive. Yeah. He fired fired right out there. Is there something else going on in your relationship with him or in his head? Now here's the thing. You also could say this very like, didn't have to be mean spirited.

Like, you could be like, hey. I got all these orders online. It's like, man, you're just trying to avoid people. Yeah. Like, it didn't have to be a jerk thing. Yeah. Yeah. I'm bet here's a here's actually, I'm gonna alter my conclusion. I think it's true. I bet he said it in like a like not a crazy serious manner, and you probably took it offensively because he's right. Yeah. Yeah. You're guilty. Okay. We've really turned the corner here. That's exactly what happened. The merry-go-round is coming back to Yeah.

Yeah. Condemned. Man. Alright. We got one more. Ready? Yeah. Dear life from the Pale. Yep. I have a group of wonderful lady friends I have known for decades. We get together monthly for a dinner and drinks at a local restaurant. The location is generally left up to whoever has a birthday that month and usually varies among three choices.

Occasionally, I bow out if they choose a restaurant that caters to a local creep. This man, quotes Bob, has never been charged with an offense, but I was one of his victims twenty years ago, weeks after my first husband's death. Bob broke into my home and stole items from my husband's office. I was there at the time, and he came into my bedroom while I was dressing. I screamed at him, and he responded that I hadn't heard him knocking at the door, and he wanted to make sure I was alright. I have no ties to Bob, but my friends do. All of them are aware of his actions and reputation.

So is the owner of this nightly hangout. But Bob is a jolly bar guy and buys drinks, so everyone except me is okay with it. I get I get at the thought oh, PTSD at the thought of attending of our dinners with this particular establishment who's chosen, so I usually skip those nights. A few of the women in my friends group have told me I need to just get over it, but I can't. Any advice on how to handle this? I have a couple quick questions with this story. Agreed. You go you go first. I'll I'll follow. Okay.

Creeper Bob, fine. Let's say he gives off a vibe. Usually, that's enough. Ladies, I just say, if a dude gives off a vibe, trust it. That guy's a creeper. No big deal. But then there's this weird story where he breaks into your house and you didn't know he was there. And he stole a bunch of stuff and then you still didn't know he was And

then while there was a dude ruffling around your stuff, stealing your stuff, like, stealthy as a cat twenty years ago after your first husband's death, you're just casually changing your garments. And here he come busted into the bedroom, like, just making sure everything's cool. And you're like, ah, Bob, get out. You know I'm saying? And then, like, all is just well, we're like, well, Bob. You know what I mean? He took a couple things and caught me in the wilds.

Bob. You know what saying? Like, this is this is a weird story. Yeah. I'm not not saying he ain't a creeper, and you ain't a 100% right. But the story you're telling to condemn this dude, it's it's got some holes. There's some holes in his boat. Yeah. So so, like, one of in fact, a creeper, that he's a peeping bob is, like, the third most likely option in my mind. Yeah. Okay? The first most likely option

is that, I don't know, he came in that someone else stole it, and he saw it and came to come check on it. In which case, he could, like, walk into your room to see what's going on like, to come tell you, and you just happen to be dressing and that he's not a creeper. That would make sense to me. It's also very possibly that he was stealing. He came in to steal. And that when he came into your room, he didn't come in there to peep on you because he wouldn't know you were dressing. He came in to continue stealing. Yeah. He's a thief. And so it's different to say if he's not a creeper, he's just a thief. I mean, that's okay. But then I wouldn't actually have a problem going to the bar where a thief is if he either paid his time or if you didn't turn him in, that's your own fault. So but that's different than a creeper. Yeah. A creeper gives up a certain vibe to him. Yeah. You're like, nah. Yeah. So I think the third option

that he he just so happened, like, that he stole and then also said, I also wonder if she's dressing in there. Let me go take a peep. Yeah. This is like an opportunistic criminal. He's like, I'm willing to break any law as long as it comes across Majeska. Yeah. That's what he is. So he's like, he's trying jaywalked on the way over. He's like, I'm gonna steal, but I'm like, you know what? I could also be peeping at people. Like he's I guess why I'm here. Like he's holding the goods from the his her late husband's office and walks into here and goes, I wonder if there's nudity. Yeah. I just it does not pass on. Also, like, there's like, the word creep this I'm sorry, lady. Look. I believe you. And like this, I'm not making light of anything that this happened to you. But, like, the word creep implies some kind of stealth. And this dude feels like about as stealthy as the Kool Aid man. You know what I'm saying? Like, just pops through the door. Hey. Like, I stole the pen opener. You know? Like, alright, Bob. You know, cut a trail. But but well, here's the thing. I guess I don't think I don't believe her. I I believe that she's under this impression. But, like, what are the odds that, like, everybody knows about this and is okay with it? Yeah. Maybe they're okay with it because it didn't actually happen that way. Like like, that she has a believe she's I mean, maybe she's traumatized from her husband's death and, like, was embarrassed because Bob caught a peep and

now is gonna blame Bob as opposed to going, it happens or whatever. Like, I just I think it's very possible it just did not happen the way that she thinks it did. Also, how does she know Bob's there? Is it like Bob always at the bar? It sounds like it. Is that he must it must be the a frequent flyer at one of these bars. Bob's bar? He he regales people with stories of his brigandry. How can everybody know about this guy and no one is feels this strongly about it Right. Except for this gal? The whole town, her friends included, who go out every month are gaslighting her in defense of Bob the creeper because he's a good time Bob and buys drinks. I just I'm not it's not passive. It's weird. And it's twenty years ago? How long ago did your first husband die when you were like 40? You think she murdered him? I that's that's not what I thought at all. No. Is this a ruse? Do you think Bob murdered him? For murder. Bob's the equal opportunity crime guy. He's well, someone needs murdered. I guess I got time. I'll be back in Maybe her husband died young. Yeah. Yeah.

But either way, here's what like, honestly, here's what I actually think. I think Bob is a town drunk. I think that, like, it doesn't mean he's a jerk. I think the poor woman's husband died. Drunk Bob comes over there, rifles through the desk a little bit, and then goes well, he's like, I should probably check on this woman while I'm here. I'm so sorry about you. I had a nightgown, but I'm sorry. And then he gets kicked out. And then he just goes back to the bar and does regular Bob Drunk things.

Like, I I think he's just an alcoholic who's, you know, probably creepy. Doesn't have a good control of himself. Yeah. Like like the town drunk on the Andy Griffith Show. Yeah. Otis. Smiley Otis. Yeah. Yeah. Very happy guy. Oh, wrong cell. Yeah. Oh, wrong bedroom. Yeah. I don't know. He probably don't even remember it. Classic Bob. He don't remember your visage. And maybe this lady's old and, like, what she thinks was peeping. Like, she was actually wearing a nightgown and a moo moo together, and she's like, oh, she's he saw me in my nethers. Yeah. I mean, granted Bob shouldn't have been in there or whatever, all the stuff. He was trying to stop a burglar, Mike. I don't know about that. I mean, it's hard it's hard to say. But let's say that she's asking. Like, basically, my friends keep dragging me to this bar where Bob is. Be like, look. If it really bothers you that much, just bow out for the night. Yeah. Be like, I'm not gonna go. Yeah. I do this all the time. Even if I don't wanna park downtown, that's enough reason for me to go. I don't wanna go. Yeah. You know I'm saying? Like, I don't need a better reason than that. It sounds expensive, and I don't wanna be out till 11:30. Forget it. I'm gonna stay home. Yeah. And I actually I think the less emotionally you are invested you are in your friends talking to you, the better it's gonna be. Like, by the third time they go, why don't you come out, Bev? Like, come out to this thing. It's like, I told you I'm not going to that bar. What else are we talking about? You guys know why. Stop doing you know, like, just leave me alone about it. You know? Yeah. Yeah. Alright. So Secular says, I am so sorry for what happened that day. Although Bob didn't touch you, the terror was real.

I do have a couple of suggestions regarding how to handle this. The first is to continue refusing to attend birthday celebrations that might expose you to the man who broke into your home. Did you file a police report? Also, think twice about how, quotes, wonderful a woman friend is who would choose that restaurant for her party. If your PTSD continues, consider consulting a licensed mental health professional who specializes in it. Who? What do you okay. If you were the if you were the friends, I guess, if she tells you, like, is it possible that you're trying to help her get over it?

Like, you know that she's overreacting and you keep insisting upon it to try to, like is it wrong to try to shake her loose? I hear I mean, under a ruse. Yeah. Like, if you tell them that's what we're doing and say, look, Bob's gonna be there. We're gonna go. That guy does not get to dictate your life. You go to whatever restaurant you wanna go to. No. I'm not comfortable with that. Or, yeah, I'm willing to give it a shot. Either way, living out loud in the complete truth of it is completely fine. But, like, trying to, like, sneaker into it and, like, expose her therapy to this thing, like, on the bruise, that's that's stupid. Yeah. Okay. Alright. Fair enough. Hey. You've been listening to Live From The Path. We appreciate you hanging out with us. If

you have any thoughts or questions for the show, hit us up on the Live From The Path Complaint line. (515) 517-0085. Call or text. We'd love to hear from you. And With my Pharisee myths. Yeah. Yeah. Hey.

We're gonna we're gonna head on out of here. I'm not sure when we'll be back. That person I was talking about earlier was Melody. She's the one that says amazing things about her her thrift store priesthood. Thrift store. Yeah. Real gloaty about him. Yeah. Yeah. That's not my she's a lovely person. Anyway, we're heading out. In the meantime, be faithful to the means. God will handle the ends. You've been listening to

life from the past.