Live from the Pathway Studios in Johnston proper. You are live from the path. Live from the Pathway Studios here in Johnston Prepper.

This is why this is why the Internet is such a dangerous place. It. What's the problem with the Internet? I was gonna say. Here's the it's a short form video that pulls you in. I just got literally like, I know the show's starting, and I'm like, okay, Mike. We gotta think about stuff we're gonna do. And, like, I am stuck watching this short form video of a guy who says, you wanna know how to build a survival shelter out in the woods? Put sticks and whatever. Knew that. It does sound like you get pulled in on. Yeah. I do wanna see this. You know? And, like, this dude's making, like, this door in it, and he's got moss he's picking out. And I'm like, I I'm sitting there thinking, I could do this. I wonder if I got enough stuff around my place. I have a house on my property Yep. That I live in, sleep in, heat, cool, whatever. And, like, I spent spent the last six minutes watching this dude on the Facebook make a a shelter out of dirt and twigs. Yeah. And I'm like, this is how people lose years of their lives. Same thing. It's like, sometimes they'll they'll I'll I'll be scrolling, and then they'll be like, I found this axe buried in the in the yard. I'm like, oh, axe restoration.

Oh, axe restoration. Just And I just Mike Foost. Watch it. And I think, okay, Mike. Memorize this. The next time you run into something that needs restored, you'll be already prepared. But they never label their chemicals. That's where they get you. Yeah. The same thing with the car restoration guys who clean carpets and stuff. Like, you see them spray this unknown chemical on there. You're like, well, what's that? And then They sell it to you for $45 a month. I check. I'm like I'm like, alright. As soon as I figure out what secret chemical this guy's using, then I'll buy it, and then I will be able to also clean my carpets as well as this guy. And then he doesn't ever tell you. It's like a secret of the professionals. Yeah. Yeah. Dan, have you ever watched anything on the on the YouTubes or the Facebook of which now you have it all over your feed and you're like, boy, I just should not have watched that one. Yeah. I can't I can't think of anything off hand, but it every once in a while, it yeah. I'll see, stop it. Just just take it away. Some of some of my clothes, the shirts, wild shirts Oh, yeah. They they they pop up. I I may actually click on some of them, like, I've gotta see this. You're being profiled. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Here's a little guy Those algorithms are dangerous. Yeah. Like, I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm just gonna tell you guys something. It's like like, every once in a while, like, I'll be like, they just start playing videos on their own. Right? Yeah. And then, like, something that I would not be looking for and probably is inappropriate slides in. Oh, yeah. But, like, I pause on it because I'm like, woah. What is that? And I'm like, oh, I know what that is, but I looked at it longer than I looked at the axe restoration video. So you gotta find the axe restoration videos to, like, counterbalance. You're like, axe restoration. What else do people bury? Shovel shovel restoration. Like, I don't want this here, you know, but it just keeps showing up, and I'm like Yep. Stupid algorithm. I get a lot of animals eating other animals. Yes. Damn.

I get lawn restorations and then sovereign citizens fighting in court. Like, those are the two random things that have recently popped up into my YouTube shorts that I cannot get rid of. But, like, those lawn restorations are cool. Like, the people that go out and are like, hey. I'm gonna knock on your neighbor's door and say, hey. That that lot's vacant. Right? Oh, yeah. I'll I'll do it for free. I love that stuff. I love those things. And then sovereign citizens crack me up every time they just get owned in court. They're like, yes. That's my my legal name, but that's not what I go by. I'm representing myself as my own power of attorney. I'm like, you're an idiot. You have no idea what you're talking about right now. And the judge is like, if we can't agree that you are your name, I'm not moving forward, and I'm holding you in contempt of court for forty eight hours and fining you $3,000. And they're like, I don't even it's can you prove to me that you're actually a court? Can you prove to me that that there's a there's actually someone that is I'm indebted to right now? And I'm like, I love when the bailiff's like, hey. You should really shut up. But get them. It's not gonna go well for you, friend. I attend a lot of these. Yes. Alright. But the the YouTube thinks or the Facebook thinks I would enjoy the show Blue Bloods. I get I get Blue Bloods. The cop show? Yeah. Yeah. With Tom Sillick. Yes. I do like Tom Sillick. Oh, the mustache.

Okay. Here's what we got going on the show this this day. I wish we were doing an axe restoration. I know it. I really love watching bringing an axe. I really love watching people sandblast stuff. It is very satisfying. Tank doing electrolysis on an old cast iron pan. Actually, I did watch one where some guy did, like, a a '16 year sixteen seventeen hundred toaster or or not toaster, like a bread slicer. Like, like, crank or something. I was impressed. It had a cord and everything plugged into the wall. It was great. Okay. I watched a video of the history of the pencil sharpener, and I was like and I thought, this is why like, I tell I I every time I'm like, you know, be careful on the Internet, as I tell the youth group kids, and they're all rolling their eyes at me and stuff, thinking that I mean, hey. Don't be looking at terrible things or don't you know, stuff that's gonna get in your brain. But, like, I could literally waste the exact same amount of time watching a toaster restoration from 1964. Yeah. And, like, these are the things I'm trying to combat because I can watch a bunch of lawn restorations from people, and then all of a sudden, like, realize that I could have gone out and done three of them if I just stopped watching this guy.

Dang it. That's true, Mike. I I was watching a basketball game tonight, and I and I mentioned to the people I was with. Said that person runs like a giraffe. They it was just kind of a lanky, very tall, just just awkward. And I open up my phone and the first thing pops up is this giraffe videos and some, like, leopard or something chasing after him. And I'm like, okay. This that yeah. They're listening. Yes. They're listening. They're listening and they know that you have something to do with animals eating animals. Have you have you guys seen that video of that old school, like, nineteen fifties dude putting up drywall? Uh-uh. No. No. He's got well, I I'll have to find it and share with you. It's some dude I mean, he's dressed like he's going to like, while people would go to church, like, but even better today. And he's putting up drywall at his house, and all he has is, like, this hatchet looking thing. And he's just awesome. He's he's cutting it, like, just eyeballing cutting it, putting up the rounded arches, putting slices in the back, putting it up there, using nails. He oh, he's That's insane. He's impressive. Telling you. That some of those some of those things are super cool. You just don't realize, like, the talent and craft we lost. Right. Like, as we made everything so simple and and and what appears to be easy to do. Right? But, like, there's people that just nailing this. You know what I'm saying? Like, one one dude, like, slinging a whole house of drywall, and, like, he goes to bed like it's no big deal. You know? Like, I just gotta do this tomorrow. Where's my hatchet? Oh, yeah. I did I did car work over the weekend. I had to like, this would be the second time I had to replace these lower control arms in this my wife's Suburban. This is not it's involved work. Like, you've gotta take off all the stuff and the the knuckle and all the business. I don't do this very often. In fact, I'm I feel like I'm normally likely to screw it up or get to a place where I'm not sure whether you're allowed to beat on and things, and then I end up breaking up.

So but, anyway, it generally, I've done this twice now, and both times, it took me, like, a day and a half, and I'm just like knocked out. Like I've accomplished the the the world has changed with the amount of effort and brain focus it takes me to do this. And so I got it all done and it works and I'm picking up the tools and I'm like worn down looking for some sympathy for my family around me. And it took me like thirty seconds of talking to my wife, and then it ran through my mind. There's fellas that are doing this, like, every day. Yeah. They don't think anything of it. They do it all the time. And I I've I've got this big mountain built up like I accomplished something wild when there's just dudes taking care of business all the time, swapping out lower control arms like it's nobody's nobody's deal. Yeah. We're just awesome at it. I feel that way after I mowed the lawn on my sit down mower. You know what I'm saying? Like, I feel, like, really accomplished, and I'm like, what have you guys been doing? I've been out mowing the lawn. I've been sitting on my butt. I mean, literally driving a remote control car. Just happening to be cutting grass while I was at it. Listening to music. Doing something else. You know, listen to a podcast or a sermon or something. I'm out there just mowing a yard, and it's no no skin off my nose at all. And then I come in like, whoo. I mowed the whole yard. I gotta take it easy, baby. I've been mowing. So I've I've never owned a home. I've never I've never, like, had had a a lawn, really. Like, I've lived in apartments most of my life, and I'm the guy that, like, I I've I've tried to do an oil change one time in my car, and I broke something, and, like, it it leaked oil until it was dead. And I don't know. It's bad. But, like, every time I pull weeds,

I feel so accomplished. Like, I know that's stupid, but, like, just, like, going from, like, a a a flower bed that's just overrun to, like, seeing it ready to take, like, a new thing of flowers. For some reason, that's just like, man, I worked with my hands today. It's because it's doing some gardening. It's villainy. Something's attacking your Right. Supplies for your family. I I have a righteous vendetta against these against these weeds. Alright. Okay. We're gonna get to this. We're here's where we're go on the show. First of all, the key one of the key questions we're gonna talk about is, like, seriously, though, is the is it possible that the devil is after you with the circumstances in your life? May maybe they're piling up and you're like, boy, I feel like like there might be demonic activity or whatever after me. And so we're gonna sort through Let's go other oh, yeah. Oppression or circumstance, like, not necessarily, like, overtaken by demons. Yeah. Doesn't have to be like possession.

But, like, is it possible that there are evil forces set by the Prince of Darkness to otherwise sully your life, cause inconvenience, irritation, and generally just like stop you from doing something good or you believe God is pointing you to. So we're gonna get to we're gonna get to that contextual question. Also, have a few articles that we're gonna get through. And then when we get to Dear Life from the Path, we're gonna try something out. We're gonna reintroduce remember a few episodes ago, we had it was secular versus life from the path versus AI.

And AI had done a pretty good job. Yeah. Pretty good job. Yeah. Okay. So we're gonna try one where it's gonna be secular answer versus life from the path versus AI instructed to respond how the apostle Paul might respond. And so we're judging the AI, one, on the quality of its response, and then two It's gonna be epic. How close is it to what we think the apostle Paul might have responded? Yeah. Okay. This is gonna be righteous. Okay. Let me do we're I hope it mentions, like, his credentials. Hi, Paul. Like, it does it as a full Right. Yes. Exactly. A full Hi, Paul. In the line to become a high priest. Okay. So there was an article. This is from the Christian Post. It says, Steven Furtick's Elevation Church sent Easter seeker friendly invites that omit resurrection and Calvary.

Now, what? Let me ask you this question. Do these words mean let's let's just let's let's bypass resurrection for now because I'm I'm pretty sure I got a flyer from the local Baptist congregation that said he is risen and didn't did not say resurrection in it. So, like, if we're being hyper specific on words, the First Baptist Church of Monroe, I think, has also caused the trouble. Mhmm. But, like, I was thinking of this topic earlier in the week, or last week probably. I was driving by a church and the sign said Jesus is the answer to our sin. And I thought, yes, that's true, but I already know that because I am a follower of Jesus, and this is not a surprising statement to me.

If you didn't know Jesus, love and follow Jesus, and you passed the first church of Greece, k, of Olympus. Mhmm. And it says, Zeus

die the answer to your sin is Zeus. I would probably have two questions if I wasn't a Christian. I would say, I don't understand what is sin? Like, what do you mean? Right. And why does it need an answer? And in what way did Zeus provide it? Right. These are reasonable questions if you had no other context. Yeah. And so this article struck me because, I mean, they're they're gonna be And I don't know if those questions are compelling enough to bring me in to get an answer. No. I wouldn't go I wouldn't pull the car over. They should they said on the door. Hey, Sin, Olympus. Is that right? And if he's the answer, great. I'm glad this is taken care of. Conflict. Conflict is is Sin. Fantastic job getting an answer to your question. Right. Thanks for letting me sin. Keep keep me up to date on you'll use your sign to communicate with me. Isn't that on a graphing calculator? So so he but here's the thing that I thought of is that, like, I I would say

sin is not a helpful word if you're trying to reach people who don't love and follow Jesus. I would say actually sin is also not a super helpful word if you're trying to reach people who've left the church. And it's because I don't think it's not a wrong word. It's well translated, actually gets exactly to what you're asking, but there is a familiarity with it and frankly I think times of which we've used it without the full context of a relationship with Jesus of which people have kind of a visceral reaction to it and I don't think the word is as helpful. And so I think that's the when I saw this article I thought, well like, who cares whether they said Calvary? Like why would that if you're sending out invitations to like come to our church and you're not just trying to swap Christians around, like, you're not trying to take Christians from another congregation,

you're trying to reach people who need Jesus, I I I would if you had sent me something to proofread that said Calvary, I'd go, dude, nobody knows what this is. You should not say that. Right. And It's like a soap or something. Yeah. I've always used Calvary. That's right. It gets my whites whiter. This is If you want it to smell good, I'd purchase Zion. Zion I use for freshening up the smells. Even even resurrection,

I don't know. I like here's the thing. The the the critique that could come from where I think I'm coming from is you're trying to soften the gospel in some way or another. You're kinda trying to trick people to come and follow Jesus. But like, it's neither of those two things. Like, I think we need to be a little bit more mature about it. Like, I wouldn't explain sin to my five I wouldn't say sin to my five year old. Right. I would say God has a good way of that he set life to work and we've fallen short of it. We missed the mark. That's what the sin means. It means he had an ideal and we didn't hit it. Whether we weren't capable of it at the time, we didn't know it at the time, or we specifically chose not to do it. Because frankly, everyone can agree to that. Everyone recognizes that if there's any type of broad moral shortcoming, everyone can feel it in the bones that they've missed it. Right? So, like, that's actually something that we can get to the point of. Then then the next logical conversation is who gets to decide where the mark is? Is god real? If he is, does he know what's good? And is that the mark? And then I would know. Great. That's actually a really good conversation. And

and the reason and here's the reason you probably shouldn't set the mark and your uncle Tom probably shouldn't get to set the mark and your first grade teacher also falls short of setting the mark. So, like, I don't I don't look at that as dodging the gospel at all. Like, I look at it as like like saying things in a way that people would recognize and not using familiar or it's not lofty language, it's street language, but it's just unfamiliar. Right. Lacking context, like, those things don't have the the the hammer of weight that you think they do. Like, resurrection doesn't okay. Cool. I understand the word resurrection. Why was there a dead person now alive, and why do why does that matter to me at all? Like, the the Bible doesn't and, obviously, I understand it's 66 individual books, but the Bible doesn't start at Jesus' resurrection and the fact that he was taking on all of the weight of sin. That means nothing to me Yeah. If I don't understand, one, Genesis of, like, who God is, what he did when he created the universe, what we are because we are created beings by a creator god in this universe, and then that we fell, screwed stuff up, and that he redeemed it. Like, without the beginning parts of that, redemption means nothing. The resurrection means nothing. Sin means nothing. You think that there's just a guy in the sky that has a big rule book and that because of the way that he made you, you keep breaking it over and over again, but you didn't realize that he created you perfectly and wonderfully, and we fell, but he's been redeeming it since the beginning. And that's where that power comes from. And it's like, oh, cool. He he created this redemptive story of his son that fixes all that for me. Now I don't just have this domineering,

you know, bearded man on top of a throne staring down at us going, you screwed up, and I saved you from it. Like, there's a lot more to it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like, there's just a context to understand who God is. Right. I think I think for in an attempt to protect holiness, we're we're missing the forest for the trees here. Mhmm. And and it's so interesting. There was a reaction from Shane Idelman, who's the pastor of Westside Christian Fellowship in Southern California. Is he related to Kyle? I don't know. That's not kind of when you said that, I'm like Yeah. They're second cousins. Well, so Kyle Idelman is Southeast Christian Church. That's right. Is he the Christian the guy who wrote the Christian Atheist? Or he wrote Sam something. Not a fan. He did several. Not a fan. Yeah. Right. And that's what I was thinking books. Anyway, this pastor said, this is wokeism. I don't want to offend others. Well, you just offended god.

What? It's it is an it is an English translation, sir. I want to say, listen. You can market the gospel. Just say, come and see what Christ has done. I'm not embarrassed of the gospel. Calvary is a wonderful thing. He shed his blood on Calvary and has set me free, and he has risen again. Yes, sir. Totally agree with you, but that is not gonna get you step one into someone who does not understand what you're saying. Is the word Calvary in one of the gospel accounts? Where does that even come from? It's yeah. I wanna say Like, I know Golgotha's in there. I know Golgotha. I don't know Calvary from an account. You know what I'm saying? Like, we might have just been grabbing onto this. Shoot. The thing is that the preacher dude there is is such an easy target for so many other things that people pile on and they just look for things. That's true. And they're not it's just not

good logical thinking of they're not like in his marketing piece who's not speaking to Christians, which is what you've been saying. Yeah, right. I mean they're trying to get him in to hear the Gospel. We hope I don't trust him with the Gospel, I'm not gonna complain about his marketing because that's a whole different issue. Yes. Right. Right. Right. Right. Separate like, this is where good thoughtful conversation happens. Like, regardless of what you think of the band. I don't find this unreasonable at all. I've actually find it pretty savvy. And there was Robert Jeffress, if you remember, he's the senior pastor at First Baptist in Dallas. And I do remember that. He he comes up in the news a lot because he

The Christian news. Well, no. Even in He has secular stuff. Secular news too. He he he tends to get involved with political figures. Oh. Anyway, he also said it's it's an effort to water down the gospel message. Here's I guess so interesting. We're gonna pick on Paul later on to see how he might respond to a thing. But, like, in in the garden or the the the walkway of the gods or whatever, like, again, he recognizes the context he's speaking in and so he uses things that they'll understand. So if if would you accuse Paul of watering down the gospel because he recognizes he's not gonna come in with all the Hebrew words? Like, Matthew talks, like, again, frames frames his gospel differently because of who he's interacting with than Luke does. Right. Are those guys watering down the gospel? No. And so, like, you're we're just being foolish. Like, it's it's goofy. It is. This is my fortieth Easter sermon I just did, right? And I

don't think ever in those forty years have I ever sent out anything mentioning the word Calvary. Why would you even do that? But they have heard the Gospel many times. Right, right. Yeah, yeah, it's like a righteousness bingo we're running on our Easter programs. Exactly. They're getting picky. Guy is an easy target, so they're exaggerating. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And I guess I would submit, if this is something that you struggle with or that you see, the gospel isn't the the words.

Like, I I learning language becomes important. Words are there for a reason. Understanding what words mean is beneficial. They are the words like almost all the translators are gonna use the word sin. So, it's helpful to recognize what it means but like, again, talk to them, talk to someone who doesn't know Jesus like you would a child because your child doesn't know Jesus. I give them the definition of things and then I give them the word to refer to it. I don't give them a word and then berate them because they don't understand what the words Like it's just, it's it's I I I would just press this off really, like, oh, okay. This is like this is dumb. Except for, like, it's almost anti gospel. You're framing it as if you're the righteous, prideful party, and other people who don't know Jesus should be otherwise shamed because they don't And know your it's it's arrogant. And so it bothers me probably a little bit more than just being like a fly on the wall. Like I'm irritated with it.

Okay. It would appear as though Calvary is found in Luke twenty three thirty three, but only in some translations because others use Golgotha and others use a place that is called The Skull. That's because they're trying to water down the gospel. Yeah. Is the problem. Liberals translation. The Fountain Of Calvary. Are you kidding me? Okay. There was also another another article, Christian Post. Did we even read that last article, or did we just break down the title? I skimmed it. Wasn't worth going through all of it. Alright. This is three key evidence evidences of Jesus' return from the grave.

So this one, I like, this is where I do think this is important as we talk about Easter. Again, I take it I I spent probably two days trying to figure out my mind why we say he is risen. Instead of he has risen? He has. He rose. He did rise? Yeah. He he still is risen. He didn't die again. I don't know. He rose up from the grave and then kept rising. Right. That's what it makes it sound like he's in a permanent state of risen. Yeah. I think maybe He's been levitating for two thousand years. What are you supposed to say when they say, he is risen? And then the congregation was it's like old time. Oh. And somebody said it the other day, I'm like, listen. Is he I forget. It's no. It's like a yeah. Maybe that I don't know. It's some thing.

Some people my age are supposed to know, but but I I have it's never stuck. That's Well, we're the same age, and I don't know that one. Yeah. That is kinda funny if you end up walking yourself into what is a call and response that you were not aware of. Because this that's awesome. That's that's me going to any church that does any call and response. I go, I have no idea what I'm supposed to I I had a guy do the communion on on Sunday. Right? And he started out with he has risen, and I know because he's an older guy. He was expecting the congregation to do what they're supposed to say, and they all just started clapping. And he looked at me like, I don't think you know this. Thought, I don't even know it. Ain't all the time god is good? He's a great guy, but I thought, oh, I'm just gonna talk to him later and say, dude, nobody knows that. Yeah. That's the We haven't done that since the seventies. So, Bubba, your situation is awkward if you don't know what the response is. It is even worse if you initiated the call and did not know it. Right. Since someone just, like, fires one off. Mhmm. Okay. So but, anyway, I I think this is important because, like, again, where where Paul is coming from, if he doesn't rise from the dead, if that was not a factual literal event, then we don't have a faith. Right. Everything this is based off is garbage. Yes. Is he has risen indeed for those listening with, you know, whatever. Oh, I'm just gonna say risen he has. ADD or whatever. Who who'd be really disappointed if we're not giving the answer? That's right. You should just ask it as an incredulous question. He is risen. He did? He's risen indeed. What? Okay. So this guy has three key evidences of Jesus' return from the grave. One, verification that Jesus died by crucifixion. Said there are very few scholars today who deny the evidence that the Romans crucified Jesus. This is

is true, and this is a good place to start with someone who's like, this is all garbage. It's it's obvious like, you have to reckon with the reality of Jesus. Right. I'm gonna there's some faith in here for sure, but, like, the reality was is, like, you cannot deny his existence, and there's all kinds of things about his life that are attested even outside of the biblical record and that even gets into why do you dismiss the biblical record as history? Like you can't just say that, you're gonna have to tell me why you get to dismiss that, but you'll believe historical sources that are far worsely attested, like fewer copies, way farther than when it was supposed to be originated, like you have to reckon with the New Testament as a historical document before you just dismiss it. Yeah. Right. So this one says, very few scholars today who deny the evidence that the Romans crucified Jesus, Even liberal scholars like Bart Ehrman, James Taber, and Elaine Pagles confirm Pagles. Confirmed that the canonical records are accurate in stating that Jesus was sent to be crucified by order of the Roman prefect of Judea Pontius Pilate. Yeah. Because they would have kept, like, the death records of that, essentially, like, as as the the the Roman, like, people would have. Right? Yeah. I don't think I don't think anybody claims to have have, like, the register. Right. But you have other historians who are talking

who are providing, like, have written it down that a man named Jesus Oh, okay. Gotcha. That would die on the cross Got it. And that yeah. He was sent there. And not even actually, it's not always just Josephus either because I think That's the Jewish historian, which, again, he he's a he was a turncoat, so it's not like he has fealty to Jesus or to a certain extent parts of the Jewish faith. He will get squidgy. He's a storyteller and a historian, and all history will be like that. And so I get it, that's probably a grain of salt, but he's also not the only historian. Another compelling proponent of Jesus' death on the cross is David F. Strauss. Despite being a German liberal scholar who considered many Gospel stories to be mythical, Strauss acknowledged the seemingly unbelievable assertion that Jesus survived his crucifixion.

In his work, A New Life of Jesus, Strauss elaborates, it is impossible that a being who had stolen half dead out of the sepulchre, who crept about weak and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening, and indulgence, and who still at last yielded to his sufferings could have given to the disciples the impression that he was a conqueror over death and the grave. So he's combining lot of the narrative that comes from the case for Christ, which is not only are there historical sources saying that the man died, the biblical sources that say he resurrected, but the behavior of the people in Christianity and even the Jewish leadership is difficult to reconcile Right. With a deceased and non resurrected Jesus. That would have been the end of the movement if that were the situation it would have been treated as such. That's right. He had no power to parlay upon. Not like a powerful king dies and his son acts like he's as good of a king. That man had legit power that it was assumed. Jesus had no

His only influence was over the rabble. Right. And so there was no reason to be He didn't have money, he didn't have and then most of people dispersed. It just didn't make sense. Yep. Okay. Understandably, Jesus' death on the cross is widely accepted due to early independent sources corroborating it. In addition to the canonical Gospels, the book of Acts, the early creeds and traditions that circulated in the Pauline writings like one Corinthians, There are multiple non canonical sources: Josephus, Clement of Rome, Ignatius, Tacitus, the Talmud, and Lucian of Samsonas, among others. And this is a good reminder to something that you said earlier, Buva, which is that these were 66 independent things, and so you can't go, I don't trust the Bible. Right. Or if we point to say, well, Paul wrote about it, the book of Acts said it, the gospel said it, these were independent before they were together. Right. And so and and and old documentation that could be compared against each other. Even before we like affirmed that these things all are canonic or within the canon, that would have happened in like fourth century. You know, you've got writings or at least references to writings back within the first century and a lot of really good attestations in the second century that are separate from each other. Right. And so, again, you've got to reckon with the history of the New Testament with that stuff. Okay.

Was Oah. Furthermore, when examining the details surrounding Jesus' crucifixion, it becomes clear that there's no substantial argument to suggest that He either survived or orchestrated his death. Several well documented historical and medical facts unequivocally eliminate any uncertainty regarding the possibility of Jesus surviving after being taken down from the cross. So you're saying that there's evidence that says he literally died and then evidence that he was around after said, like, death. Yes. Okay. Yes. And so this gets to number two, which is early attestation of an empty tomb and postmortem appearances.

The fact that Jesus' tomb was discovered empty just days after His crucifixion is a crucial element in the case of the resurrection. The empty tomb of Jesus is a well established fact supported by multiple early sources, including the writings of the Apostle Paul and the canonical Gospels, all of which date before A. D. A. D. In one Corinthians 15, Paul gives a historical record of an early creed circulated within five years after Jesus' resurrection that independently reports of people who saw the resurrected Christ. Jesus, the creed goes, Jesus appeared to Cephas, then to the 12. Then he appeared to more than 500 brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then all to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. So that was the reference. The presence of numerous eyewitnesses who not only saw but also conversed and interacted with the postmortem Jesus strongly supports the narrative of an empty tomb. Among these witnesses, Mary Magdalene is the first person to encounter the resurrected Christ. Alongside a small group of women, she was among the initial individuals to approach Jesus' tomb, only discover it was vacant. The significance of this account lies in the fact that at the time, women held limited credibility and were deemed ineligible as legal witnesses.

Therefore, it is highly unlikely that the disciples would have fabricated a story where women played a central role in being the primary witnesses of such a monumental event. Oh, I never thought about it like that from the perspective of, like, them not being able to be legal witnesses in any situation there. Yeah. They also here's the thing. This is a part of the this is not slam dunk, but, like, if you think about how people record history, people who write things down don't tend to write things down that make them look silly. The disciples are are continuous biographers of their own silliness. Right. They, like, they said that Mary knew and they said that the fellas were hiding away for fear of the Jews reprisal upon their following of Jesus. These are embarrassing things to say. In an honor and shame culture. Especially in an honor and shame culture. Right? And they not only did they did it because it was they said it because it was true. Right. Right? And so again, like, what is the motivation of a a set of, you know, a 12 minus one martyred

disciples to say, you know, yes, we ran for fear. Yes, I denied this Jesus. Yes, we followed someone who should have been the conqueror but who died a shameful death on the cross. What like, they didn't gain any worldly wealth. They didn't gain any possible fame. They continued to defer people trying to show put accolades on them. Like It would have made the most sense for them to just all go their respective ways back to where they were before they were called to be, you know, in the tutelage of Jesus as their rabbi. Like, fishermen go back to being fishermen, tax collectors go back to being tax collectors. Like, we all just go, oh, no. That didn't work, and then we leave. Yeah. Which is kinda what they did until the resurrected Jesus. Yeah. Hey. Let's have some fish. Yes. That's right. Let's eat. Who is that? Yeah. And then Halil called Jesus for reference. He said, I have a Pete here trying to get in with me as a rabbi. He said he's been following you around for three years. That sound right?

Well, hello. I gotta be honest. I've been coming out of the office last three days. I just I'm trying to get my bearings here. You follow Jesus time. Jesus of Nazareth? I gotta be honest. I feel like I've been to hell and back. Alright. Well, yeah, I don't like the sound of this character. I'm gonna refer him to Shammai. Oh, yeah. Okay. Alright. So I think we talked about that. Furthermore, the presence of okay. Yeah. Number three, and this was the one that we kind of alluded to, was the transformation of the disciples. There are numerous historical details supporting the resurrection of Jesus, but one last particularly compelling piece of evidence is the transformation of the disciples. The transformation why do they keep saying that? So it's such a long phrase. The transformation of the disciples. Fearful and disheartened followers to bold and unwavering proclaimers

presents a compelling argument for the truth of the resurrection of Jesus. Their willingness to endure persecution and even martyrdom for their belief in the risen Christ speaks to the sincerity of their conviction. Despite intense opposition and persecution, the early days of Christianity witnessed a rapid expansion in Jerusalem. This growth and spread of the Christian movement in the face of such challenges is a testament to the powerful impact of the resurrection. The fact that countless individuals were willing to stake their lives and reputation on the truth of the resurrection further underscores its significance in a as a historical reality. You know, that's interesting to me because I've heard the argument on many occasions of, like, the the concept of of Christianity and organized religion altogether being, you know, men trying to get power over other people because they're they're they're, like, bamboozling them to believe in a higher power. Right? But, like, in the case of Christianity, like, things went awful

in the first set like, for the for the long time after the whole Jesus situation. Like, the disciples didn't really thrive that much afterwards. All of them or most of them were murdered in horrible ways. Mhmm. And, like, it didn't really catch on. It doesn't make sense for this to be something that's that's set in motion so that a group of people are in power over others. Like, they were, like, the least in all the situations they're in, like, going from town to town, like, getting kicked out of places, getting stoned and beaten and all this stuff after their leader was murdered in front of all these different people. Risen, obviously, but, like, it just it does not make sense to go, oh, obviously, this is a ploy for power over people, and this story only exists because people wanted to, like, keep the keep the the sheep at bay kinda situations. No. These people were in horrible situations after this and gained no power from this. It's crazy. And all the churches, they they they started planting, you know, starting throughout the regions. Mhmm. It's not like they were getting a cut. No. They they moved on and started another one. Yeah. Right. Right. Exactly. Like, actually, I'm in jail. I'm in jail too. Well, I'm on an island, so I don't know what to do with this situation. I was boil boiled in water. Boiled, I mean. Don't you feel like that that that it might be, excuse me, a little bit shortsighted, right, to say, like, because of the effects of the resurrection that all these guys changed their tune. Right? Like,

only because it should be coupled with the arrival of the holy spirit. Right? Like, think of all this, like, it all completely changed. And the little reason I say that is because, like like, I don't care how much evidence I've seen Yeah. Or how many things that have been proven to me. On my own steam, I just can't sustain things. You know what I'm saying? Like, you just can't. Yeah. And so, like, I don't know how many people like, you talk to just about anybody you aren't into, and they'll be like, on my own even the thing I know to be true and, like, if I do this thing, it'll ruin me. If I do this thing, it will only produce great things, and you somehow don't end up doing it. You know what I'm saying? And so, like, I look at I look at at, like, Peter and I'm like, do I think that, like, the the resurrection would was obviously a huge thing and resurrected Jesus and, like and and all this stuff is huge to him. Yeah. But that was the same guy that was on the Mount Of Transfiguration too. Mhmm. You know? And then the holy spirit shows up. Right? And then you watch Peter walk this thing,

like, in rough circumstances till the end of his days. Same thing with Paul. Same thing with with the other disciples. You know? And so not to say that it, like, it's completely this mystical holy spirit thing, but, like, just just having all the proof you'd ever need, I I I don't know that that sustains it. You know what I'm saying? It's the living and and and active power of what Jesus said we would need. Like, it's better for you if I go. Because when I go, I will send you a helper, and this is gonna this is gonna change. This is the way this is gonna work. You know? Yeah. Yeah. That's interesting. Like, I think at its best, understanding things like this help you get past, I don't even wanna say shallow protests because they're reasonable. Right, yeah. Like, man rose from the dead. I'm not convinced these are. Seems fair to me. Also,

of the behavior of the disciples, you would look at all kinds of people who are willing to die for the religion where I would say, hey, they were wrong. And so people can be convinced to die for something that they believe in even if what they believe in is wrong. So actually, some of their changed behavior as a pattern doesn't isn't actually all that convincing except for a lot of the, like, the religious martyrdom is happening outside of the core narrative. Right. You know what I'm saying? Like, I couldn't I couldn't go prove something one way or the other right now. I couldn't go see the cross. I couldn't go talk to someone who saw it. Right? And so it actually becomes easier

to die for something and believe in something that's either right or wrong passionately enough to die for it years later because the thing that could convince you that you were wrong, the evidence is no longer available. But the disciples themselves are a very pure use case of they would have known the difference. If Jesus was a fraud, they would have known. If the healings were fake, they would have known. If he did not resurrect, they would have known and they still made the decision. Right? So it's because I have heard some people say it's like, I mean, yeah, they they changed and they're willing to die for the religion. A lot of people are. But like Muslims who are dying for the religion today are doing it based upon stuff that Mohammed said hundreds of years ago. And similar to Christian martyrs today are responding to something that they believe to be true but have to trust that got passed down accurately over hundreds of So

that's a fair critique, but the disciples themselves are a pure use case to show you that like, they would have known the difference and they reacted the way they Yeah, they still did. Yeah, right. Okay, you're listening to Live From The I hope that's encouraging to you. There were a couple just references. The Case for Christ is good. It it does cover, I think, some of those the the book that covers some of that stuff. I didn't see the maybe I did see the movie. I think did I see the movie. They did a movie on the case for crime. I think it was on Netflix or something or whatever it was. Yeah. That's how I saw it. It was okay. And then there's also

there was there was a there's a book by Josh McDowell. I'm gonna forget the name of the book, but that covers some of this stuff. Evidence that demands a verdict. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Okay. So that that also also really good. Yeah. That covers some of these things. Okay. You're listening to Life From The Path. Hey. Hit us up on the complaint line if I don't know I don't know what reaction you might have to the show thus far. If you have other Christian words that we should make sure are on next year's Easter pamphlet, that would be a shame to miss. I, here's I'll tell you this this other problem that I ran into. I was reading an Easter book to the children and it was a children's story like written for kids and they use the word blood so many times and like again, these phrases are powerful phrases if you understand what they mean. But, like, when you say them to the children, they just get they lost the whole story. Every bit of it. Right. They're like, oh, like, he's his blood was shed for us. And they're like, what does that mean? I'm like, I can explain to you what that means but like, the the the the image that comes into my five year old son's mind on shed blood for people, he he in fact, he said he retold the story two days later and goes, remember that time before Jesus died where he dressed up like a soldier, like a king soldier.

I'm like, what is he talking about? He was he was the the foot washing. He he took servant and then shed blood and then tied it to warrior because that's what he thought. Yeah. And so his record and I thought, you know, you're not wrong, but you're not right in the way you think you're right. Right. Exactly. And so, again, church sign purveyors, I'd rather you tell a joke than, like, say things that people just can't I it's I'm not saying not to say them. I'm not saying deny or water down the gospel. I'm saying nobody understands what you're saying. Right. His blood washed as white as snow. Yeah. Right. Can we can you tell a five year old Jesus heals your boo boo? I I mean,

would never that. I'm 32. Blasphemy. It's like I'd take that in. Wonder how many we should it'd be helpful to really reexamine our own language. Right? Like, I I would not use the phrase shed blood in any other context. Right. And, like, I harvest my own animals. Right. And I would never be like, this animal has shed its blood. You know what I'm saying? Like, I would just never say that. Would never participate in that again if you said, this animal has shed its blood. I I'm gonna say, like, we like, there's there is something to using the words that god provided. Yeah. Right? But but realizing that they were in a culture where those words either meant slightly different things or had some nuance to them and or words that we've just, through antiquity, have stopped using because we just don't talk like that. And so this goes down to to people that like, do I think that you should be garnering every the finer points of your theology from the message? No. I don't think you should. But like, if you're going to try to learn how maybe somebody who hasn't been going to church for twenty years is gonna take in a certain passage,

yeah, I mean, you should give it a quick read. You know what I'm saying? Like, there's no like, if just ask if someone if you were asked to just explain the gospel to somebody, like, could you just do it like a regular person and not some kind of weird robot Right. Or like a a wind up Baptist toy? You know, something that, like, just talks to people in a regular way. Yeah. You know, like, could you explain the gospel that way? Because if you can't, right, you're gonna have a hard time. Your audience is already in the pew. You know? The people that would understand what you're talking about are already there. That's that's what I'm saying is that, like, the the the one of the major shortcomings of this here is that, like, all you're doing is, like, patting other Christians on the back. Yeah. Like, oh, that church stands for the blood. I'm like, okay. I mean Nothing but the blood. What are we doing? Like, we're just gonna pass them around, and we're gonna go, like, well, that guy stands for it, so I'm gonna go sit in his pew for a while, and then I don't like his donuts or the song choices because they're past nineteen eighty six and because we're gonna go somewhere else and listen. I'm like, there's all god there's people literally, like, being licked by the fires of hell and we're walking around going, oh, oh, you're you're strong enough to say Calvary. Yeah. Like, it it's embarrassing. That's right. You wanna get into sanctification in a discipleship program? I think you should. Like that word was used, and you should be able to explain it. But if that's your opening gambit or stuff on Mount Zion

listen, man. I've been I've been following Jesus since I was, like, eight, and I still have no idea what Mount Zion is. No idea. I read it every time, and I go, I don't know what this is. Mhmm. Like the mount of all of it? I I don't know. There's, like, six major mountains in the bible, and I'm like, they're on a mountain. Like, I just replace it in my mind like they have no historical significance. I'm like, okay. They're on a mountain. Got it. I have no idea why. Is there a biblical quiz on mountains? It's like there's Ebal. There's all of it. We've got Zion. And then the bowler, Herman. Where did they lick where did they lick the fire and accuse a god of being on the pooper? Because I like that mountain. That mountain sounds fun. Your god must have stepped away to the toilet. Okay. Anyway, maybe you're upset with that. You were listening to live from the path. Is the What? That got real creepy at the end of that. Maybe you're upset about you've been listening to live from the path,

and it was very good. It was very good. The AI did not pick that clip out to distribute. Good. I don't know I don't know why. Okay. So is the devil is it Buba, do you have any context? Like Yeah. We were talking a little bit before the show started. How do I understand? Is it possible there's some evil spirits? Not not maybe not necessarily pressing, but, like, is it possible that they're focusing effort to disrupt your life, your work, not you specifically, but just people's lives, works, efforts, whatever. Right. So, yeah, so this came about because some stuff's been going on in my life that

we my wife and I feel like we're we're falling in line with the way that that God has has prepared a way for us. Okay. Hold on Before a you get started, if you're watching on the YouTube, like at your on a computer monitor or TV, if you increase the contrast on your TV, Bhuva's head will look like it's floating. Yeah. Because he's wearing a black shirt with a black background. Okay. Oh, you're gonna ruin it. Okay. No. That's good. This is much better. It looks more appropriate.

Hi. On this evil spirit thing, just thought nowhere. I just thought I better point it out. I was a floating head. Okay. It's a locked room. Alright. Ted Williams, take it over. So so yeah. So we feel like we're in a place where we're we we we've finally come to to following the path that God has got for us, and and we're we're we're trying to be obedient to that. And as that's happened, it just it feels like we're just getting attacked from all sides, whether it's financially, whether it's with our vehicles, whether it's with our family, whether it's, you know, all this different stuff. And the people around me that know the situation and know what's going on on both camps, have said the whole, like, man, it really sounds like the enemy's getting at you. Like, it really feels like the enemy's you know, you're you're walking in the way of the lord, and you're doing what he wants you to do. And so, of course, the enemy's gonna start firing some arrows at you right now. And, like, now is the time that they're that he that he's gonna attack all these things. And so as I'm as I'm taking this in, I've been I've been in both camps before where I've I've I've thought,

yeah, totally. Like, the enemy's really getting at me right now. The accuser is standing against me right now and and trying to bring me down because I'm trying to follow my father's, path for me. But then also the other side of it being like, I mean, like, life happens no matter what you're doing, and, like, stuff can seem serendipitous, and coincidental because you feel like you're making big moves or doing things for God, and then just normal life stuff happens. And, like, you're not really on the radar of the enemy. Like, you specifically are not somebody that you're shooting arrows at. Like, he's he's generally against, Yahweh and his people, but, like, it's not like a, hey. There's Frank, and Frank's really doing well. So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna pop the tire of Frank's car, and then I'm gonna make him lose his job. And, I'm gonna work that into its ways so that the machinations that I set out really ruin, Frank's walk with God, and, yeah, I got another one. I I I'm trying to reconcile how we feel about what side of that is right or wrong. Is there a middle ground that I might not be understanding, like the spiritual battle and war that it talks about in the Bible that I fully recognize exists?

Like, how does that does does how does it does it manifest that way in reality? Am I being attacked by the enemy? That's my setup and that's what I wanna know. What's your opinion, Phyllis? Okay. So my first reaction is that this is happening,

the influence of evil spiritual forces is far more substantial than we generally acknowledge. But it is far less often happening in that way than I think oftentimes I hear people speak of. Right. And I think it makes me think of Paul and kind of the powers and principality Like, there's a reason that when

Paul goes out, he goes to the big cities and he goes to the synagogues and stuff. The receptive audiences, greater amount of influence, less amount of effort, it's a very wise way to do it. Jesus took the peripherals, Paul goes straight for the big places. Similar things when Paul talks about powers and principalities, like we're talking about major significant influences over major influential organizations, nation states,

other false belief systems and that kind of thing. I believe like that is real, that is true and is substantial. And I think that we under

appreciate is really not the phrase I want, but like we under recognize the nefarious influence in entities from evil spirits.

From a personal perspective, can it happen? Yes, I think it can. Does it happen on an individual basis? I think it also can. But I think it's interesting, so I trying to think how to a good way, a way that doesn't make me sound bad, but like over the last week, I have not done anything particularly faithful to Jesus. Like

nothing where I'm like, I'm taking a taking a big step out, like, I'm finally selling all the land and gonna drink dirty water for days and to help people in the Congo. I don't know. Whatever it might be. I I I've lived my normal life as far as I can tell. And, like, stuff is breaking all over the place. The cars are in rough shape. The laundry stinks because, like, the toilet's not flushing like it's supposed to. I couldn't. I'm trying to do all this stuff and I can't catch a break. I'd like, everything is behind in every front. I I think it is just happens Yeah. In that particular situation. I I wouldn't have reached for for like like, could here's the question. If you weren't doing something specific

and and could you look at a situation and go, oh, it's just a rough week or a rough set of weeks or something like that. If you if you if you can't really tell the difference between the two, either either evil spiritual forces are bad. Remember when you told a story one time about going to somebody's house who who thought the house was haunted Mhmm. Or possessed or something like that. Right? Haunted, maybe it was too shallow. But, like, we we talked about at the time where a lot of the ways that people describe, like, evil or demonic forces is cartoonish. Like, moved a stool, caused the phone to ring and then no thing was there, like things that didn't make a lot of sense, you know? And so the problem

that we generally run into, I think where people are like, hey, I'm being attacked, like of the times that I've heard it, most of that stuff could be attributed to either their own behavior. Like, you're not being attacked. Like, you're acting in such a way of which these things are happening to you because you're misbehaving. Like, you're not obeying. Or, like, you're particularly sensitive to the malfeasance or trouble of others. Like

you wouldn't have tied something together except for the fact that like in some relative quick succession, somebody who always behaves in this way just also happens to behave in that way in the while other things are happening. Context. Yeah. Because, like, anytime where I felt something's really rough, I'm like, why is this all happening now? And then I think to myself, well, this happened all the time. Like, it just happens to be Right. It's something that I've like, not out of left field. Like, it doesn't tend to be other people's behavior, my behavior, or other things that I've otherwise not seen. It's just compressed from a timing perspective. And so I'm not saying that it can't be the case, but, like, it also means that of all the places of which influence could be happening, you're the the thing that you're gonna go do

the enemy goes, you know, a person strong in their faith who's gonna do something for Jesus, I believe they can be stopped by some inconveniences. I actually, I think that's probably the bell ringer for me is, like yeah. The the spiritual world, especially the enemy, the accuser, goes for your faith. That's where that's what it's trying to get at. Mhmm. And so, like, a broken down car, I suppose it it might shake you. It might not. Right? But it's when you start hearing lies. Right? Like, it's it's when you start like, your thought pattern starts to change where you're like it's it's echoes the garden. Right? Like, did God really say?

Are his promises really good? Right. Is he faithful to do? Are you sure you believe that? You know I'm saying? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like like, it's like circumstances that start showing up and then, like, you're it's either they start adding up or they start like, you look around you and you're and and, like, all of a sudden, like, questions that you've not had start to show up. And it starts like it's it's attacking, like, the the actual faith that you have in who Jesus is Mhmm. And who God claims to be and who you are in relation to that. That sniffs

way more heavier and way more pointed than irritation. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Yep. And so I could see it's I I don't think that it's a it's like never. You know, like, pop tire seems ridiculous, you know, or like your whole place falling apart, and they're super irritating. But I I think it like, if if you start having thought patterns change and start feeling like like you are you are either coming up with lies internally or you're starting to hear lies more often, then you're like, now what now wait a minute. I don't I don't know where this is coming from. This seems different to me. That feels like an attack on my foundation of who God is.

That feels way more spiritual to me, like a pointed spiritual attack type of thing. So I don't I don't know if this is gonna work because I'm making that in my head as I go. Alright? So it's not fully thought out. Of it, you know, the principalities and the powers and the layers and levels and everything. I'm trying to think of it like on a football game. Let's say you're the running back. Yeah. So As I often am. As you often are because you got that, right? And so the whole idea is gonna give you the ball. He wants you to score. He's put you on this mission. Right? Mhmm. Here's what I want you to do. There's a touchdown. Go get it. On the other side, there's a coach, a head coach, who's over the whole thing, and he's got layers under him. He's got

defensive coordinators. He's got weight program, weight guys. I mean, he's got all these assistant coaches. You got defensive linemen. You got all these all the positions. Right? Yeah. You get the balls, ball snapped. Now there's a lot of things that can happen. You can trip. The quarterback could miss, and then, like, we went the wrong direction or something. So there's there's Jesus quarterback in this metaphor? Who who is? Is Jesus the quarterback in this No. No. He's the head coach on the other side. Okay. Yeah. Got it. So the head coach isn't gonna run on the field and tackle you right now. We got these other guys doing the work on either side. And and so you're running, and so you got defensive linemen. They're gonna trip you up. Broken down car, whatever. Could be whatever. All the things in real life. Oh, that didn't work. So you got a defensive end that's gonna kinda gotta track on you, then you gotta gotta get through the line backwards and there's a safety. The whole point being there's all these layers and levels.

Some of it's on you, some of it's on them. It's all part of the spiritual game, and so does he attack? Well, yeah. But it's also like you said, some things are just set up. Some things are because there's just there's just that defensive line waiting for you. That doesn't mean Satan, the head coach, like, alright. Get him now. It's like, no. They're already waiting. And now you're making movement. They're like, ah, there's a guy moving. Take him down. Yeah. I think that's kind I mean, I could say I could be weak, but but I kinda like it the more I think about it. I'm gonna write a book. Solid Gold by Hudson. It's gonna be big. How to avoid the blitz, the heavens Help blitz. Your local pastor, God's offensive coordinator, shed the blood on the football team. Actually,

so Mike, what you were saying made, like it made me think of and maybe if you guys can help me, of the places in scripture where we get the influence of demonic activity or Satan tempting, what is like, what are the examples? Like, do they tell you anything about what the temp what the I guess the problem is is like some of the things are oppression and so those are different.

But like, I'm trying to think of like, he's when he tempts Jesus, again, it's not Jesus fasted himself. He chose so it's not like Satan withheld food. Jesus chose to fast. Yeah. But yes, to Mike's point, the temptation was to misunderstand God. And to a certain extent, although there were natural repercussions to it, one, for Job, one, Job is extremely unique. Like we do not see that same type of God permitting that kind of thing outside of Job's circumstance. But ultimately it was getting at the same thing. It was based upon the situation around you, can Job be convinced to misunderstand God and who he is and what his character is?

And so I think that is the question, not that evils cannot try to influence the minor, but like it is not a particular victory

to say Buva was gonna go finally take his life savings and go build a well somewhere and he stopped it. Okay, that didn't actually stop progressing the gospel. Right. You know what I'm saying? And so like it's a little bit shallow of a win and like I think we do, it is a mistake to think of evil spirits as cartoonish.

Agree. Some of it not that again, I I'm I'm trying to be be cautious here because, like, I get how someone could could feel this way, and I I don't know everything. It seems possible to me that some of this stuff may be true, but it wouldn't be the first thing I'd reach Think about think about it like CS Lewis style. Right? Like and to Dan's metaphor is there's no reason to tackle you if you'll trip yourself. So so if if all the more effort that would need to be put in is they're out of Diet Coke to come and go, and you showed up five minutes late to work and got yelled at, and all of a sudden you're in despair. There's no reason to, like, send a linebacker after you. Mhmm. You'll you'll walk away on your own. You'll attribute the you know what I'm saying? And and, like, the spiritual world, I believe, is is absolutely that crafty. Right. You know I'm If it doesn't take if it doesn't take a whole defensive line to come at you, the then why would waste the resources? Right. Right? We'll just irritate you a little bit to get you a little slightly off track. You know? And then and then you're like, you know, I trusted my life to Jesus, and this whole day is going to crap. So who's really watching over this world? If it was that easy to trip you up, then, yeah, they'll send out the water boy to to to tear you up. But you know what I'm saying? There's no reason to put you on the big field. I think but I I still think it does hold true. Like, Satan has a very common tactic, and, like, it's not to follow him. It's just to get you not to follow Yahweh.

That's it. It's interesting as we're talking about this and breaking it down because you guys keep coming back to the fact that it's the subtleties of the questioning of the promises and the questioning of God's provisions and the questioning of the blessings that could be taken that way. Right? Like, it it's not just the minor inconveniences.

It's the it's the circumstances that make you pause and then start to doubt those kind of things and doubt those things to God. Mhmm. And it's interesting as you're saying that because, like, all of the things, I could very easily track back to, like, oh, that absolutely is an opposition of a thing that I believe that God said was true. Mhmm. And, like, oh, that is completely something that if I weren't stronger in this or if I weren't more rooted where I'm at or I didn't have the right people around me or I wasn't in the right marriage to be able to kinda walk through this stuff together, like, could totally see that as, you know, something to do with family. God's attacking my belief in what I'm supposed to do with family or what that supposed to mean to me or what God has promised me when it comes to my family. Mhmm. Safety and security with with, monetary resources, not just because, like, I make good money and therefore I'm fine, but, like, from the perspective of, like, money has been a fearful thing for me forever, and I'm finally in a place where god has, like, given me the security to to understand that my blessings and provisions come from him, and I trust him to take care of that stuff. And then all of a sudden, that belief gets attacked of, like, oh, well, like, if if there's no rainy days, yeah, you protect me. But when there's rainy days, do you actually protect me? Like, are you actually provisioning for me? Are you actually blessing me? And it's things like that. It's like, oh,

that is interesting because it's not just not to say you guys were were categorizing the things incorrectly, but, like, to give context, like, it's it's less about the minor inconveniences, and it's more about, like, what is the truth that the deceiver is attacking? What is the thing that is is is being set up to start being questioned in my eyes? Like, what truth has god told me that I'm starting to think? Oh, is the was that a lie? And that seems to be the most dangerous thing because, like, if Jesus is truth, like, I true I believe that that, like, the true things you've said to me, and I have faith in those things, if those start to crumble, everything else falls. Like, the you don't even have to do minor inconveniences at that point in time. It's just freaking, like, sitting on Jenga blocks, and then one thing pushes. This is where Dan's metaphor starts to be awesome. Right? Because you could start it was I mean, it was awesome before Dan the tape there? Sorry. Hey. I grab ahold of this. Be because it doesn't take much for the quarterback in the scenario

to start doubting that the head coach has got a plan for this thing. Mhmm. And so he just starts calling audibles. Mhmm. Yeah. You're still on the same team as far as you're concerned. You're still heading for the same goal as far as you think. You know? But you're like but the head coach is checked out or or, like it's like they keep wanting us to do the same plan over and over again, and, like, that's not winning. That's not that's not winning the barriers. And but the thing is the head coach boy, it's metaphor. It's just like a violin, Dan. Like, the head coach's job is to win the whole game, not the next down. Uh-huh. Right? Right. And, like, the quarterback wants to win the next down. Right? It right. The whole the whole season to to have, like, to a winning team, right, to to be on the right side of of the way this is gonna go down. And the quarterback, like, gets caught in its own in his own mind, his own head, and he's like, I I need to win down two. Right. Oh, man. Two has to be one. Yeah. And it's gonna be one this way. You know what's interesting about that about that description, though, is that, like, I you don't need the opposing team to be on the field for the quarterback to have doubts. Yeah. Right. You know what I'm saying? Like, that can be so I think it goes back to what we were talking about earlier, which which is, like,

could be. Right. It could be you, could be something else happening. But here's the question that I've been kind of running through my mind is that like, to what extent does it matter? What do you do differently if it's you, if it's maybe a loss of faith or a loss of confidence in God's good, like what God is trying to do, no one is influencing, it's just a human frailty, versus it is something that there is some sort of spiritual influence into your life trying to get you to believe that, like like, tangibly, what is the what do you react? How do you react differently in those two situations?

I still run to god for both. Well, I I think that I think that that's probably true, but I think if you're looking at the raw of it, you would go like, I've been there where I'm like, am I even hearing the head coach correctly? Yeah. Right? And now you're questioning not him, but you. Right. You're the one. That's where that always happens to me. Yeah. Right. Yeah. You're never like the head coach has got the wrong like, god's got the wrong tail of the dog here, but, like but if you can't trust his presence and his word and his voice as a shepherd, if you can't trust that, it doesn't matter whether you blame the shepherd or blame you. Either way, you're not trusting it. Right. And so it doesn't take much to break that relationship. And once again, the spiritual world's savvy. Yeah. Like, it's Right. It's gonna have a hard time discrediting Yahweh God

to you. Right. But he has a real easy time discrediting you. Yeah. Exactly. And that's actually where that gets attacked is because anytime I feel like like, even in these moments where I feel like I'm I'm following along and listening for the shepherd's voice. Right? Like, the attack is not, oh, you are following a bad shepherd. Like, I would be like, you're out of your mind. Like, no. There's no universe in which I believe that. But the thing that I will believe is that, like You're a bad sheep. You didn't hear the voice of the shepherd. Voice that I hear. Exactly. Right. Yep. You heard the voice of the shepherd across the way, and then you thought it was it was disguised as as the shepherd that you're supposed to be following. You're a bad sheep. You're not good at listening. You don't know the voice of the right shepherd. All of these different things. Like, that is the attack. And going back to your football metaphor, it's like, it's not the overt move is, yeah, as a d line, we're gonna hit the o line as hard as we possibly can, rip a hole for our backs to get through. Right? Whereas that's not even the fight that's happening right now. It's the whisper between the coach and the quarterback that's like, oh, do I actually like, am I hearing this correctly? Am I capable of executing on what my coach has said? Like, can I do this kind of thing? Are the people beneath me capable of this thing, or do they should they even trust that I'm saying the right thing? And this And, like, those kind of, like, subversive attacks are the ones that seem to have like, hold the most weight and do the most amount of damage. And and this is this is where this is why people press in, and Life From The Path endorses, like, being in god's word. Yeah. Right? Like, it's the the it's the spiritual world is way more pervasive than we give it credit for. That's a 100% true. But we think that we know the tactics.

Right? And it's arrogant to you. I don't care whether you're 40 or 90. Right? You're you you may have gained wisdom on this earth for the 90 you've been here, but you're out you're out flanked, my friend Yep. By by thousands and thousands of years of watching human behavior. Yeah. And so, like, it does once again, we always think, like, you're gonna ruin my faith in God thinking that we will all of a sudden have a bad opinion of God, but, like, it's it's just as easy to have you a bad opinion of Right. You Yep. To make you believe, and you'll be like, of course, God can use me, can use everybody. But you still think I'm not a good sheep. I don't even hear the shepherd's voice right. I would obey it if I thought I heard it right, but I'm not sure I even hear it right. Well, you know how you hear it right? You spend time with the shackles. And that's the more sly and deceptive of or effective deception right there. Well, and I think that is that's the place where I've I've had a continual caution around,

like, this is gonna sound bad, I'm gonna say it, relying like completely on sort of experiential situations, like some sort of like the Holy Spirit's gonna tell me to do X, Y, Z. Here's what I know, Like a good father who says in general, we clothe the naked and we feed the poor and you go, hey, I think I'm gonna feed the poor. You should not have to spend any time doubting whether God is gonna be okay with this thing. Yeah. Right? Like we have said it over and over and over and over again. That's right. And so like, but sometimes we look, well like, is he sure that he wants me in this moment with this person to feed them and clothe them? Like I don't think we were made for that type of doubt but like, even the presence of that, it causes to say, well I didn't hear from God that I was supposed to do a thing. I'm like, well you totally, like Jesus said, this is the pattern of which we But

oftentimes we get into, well I can't be a mature Christian if I'm not hearing from the spirit in this way and some people do but that's not everybody. And so like I can't be a mature Christian if I don't hear from God in this way in these types of situations and then so then they would get paralyzed and then they start to doubt whether any of their actions are what God wants or whether God would like, well why doesn't God speak to me? He must either not love me, not exist, whatever, pick your poison. Then we got all 56 books. We got all kinds of problems for someone where like Jesus said, look, feed my people. And we're like, well, don't know. So we're stagnant. And so that's a twist, that's

a powers and principalities twist on actually a hype, see this is where it sounds bad, a hyper focus on the Holy Spirit. You know what I mean? Like I'm saying that as if God cannot speak in any way except for, instead of, except for an experience today through the Holy Spirit as if the Holy Spirit did not write the books that we read and Jesus did not prescribe the patterns of the people. And it's a both and definitely, but like, sometimes sometimes the doubts that we have on whether not whether god is good but whether we are listening or whether he is speaking to us comes from an expectation that he should have to speak when like the pattern of how his people behave

is like we have the spirit has provided evidence as to what that is. And so in in light, if I don't hear anything else, I got plenty to do. Right. And I should be able to do it confidently. Mhmm. Each of Weegies. I had a thought. Oh, go ahead. Sorry. No. You're good. I I had a thought recently. I was kind of revisiting the story of Lot and Abraham's era and Sodom and Gomorrah, that era, right? And so God tells Abraham, I want you to leave, you're gonna go to this place.

So whatever battle that took place in his mind, did I hear the right voice and I didn't he know what's went, he went. Well somewhere in there, why did he bring a lot? Like why did that even happen? Like, that's almost a secondary. Okay. This isn't working. Let's set Lot Yeah. Along. Uh-huh. So what happens there? They're prospering. Now all the people are fighting. Well, let's go separate ways. You go to Sodom. Okay. And everything that happens there, instruction over there. And then ultimately, Lot's children having offspring through Lot that become the enemies of Israel through the rest of the days. Right? I mean, know, it's like, was that like a secondary attack more indirect because the direct wasn't working? Right. So we're gonna bring him down this way I've

never really thought of that before till just recently as I was piecing that all together and I think that fits in the principality and the powers. And one way or another, we wanna stop this because obviously God's got something going on with Abraham that's gonna redeem the world. Mean, we know what's going on here and we gotta stop it and he and he couldn't. Interesting. Just a thought. That'll be my second book. Dan Dan's got some good book ideas today. Alright.

Maybe you have, have some thoughts on this particular topic. You'd like to tell us, how would I know whether I'm under some sort of spiritual tech or whether, it is, I don't know, a set just a set of circumstances. It is a human frailty of which a condition we just should acclimate to. How would yeah. How what ways might you discern and pray through that kind of thing? Let us know. You can call us on the Life from the Path Complaint Line, (515) 517-0085. It's the Bob Eisenlauer, Life From The Path Complaint Line. You can call or text. Again, (515) 517-0085.

We'd love to hear from you, get any feedback you have about that particular conversation. Okay. We ready to do some advice? Yeah. Alright. We're gonna do the poll one off the bat? Yeah. Okay. K. Ready? I'm a get it ready. Dear life from the paved, my husband and I have been friends with another couple for many years. We would get together occasionally, and we mostly enjoyed their company. When the house across the street from ours became available, they bought it. Not long after they moved in, the wife began copying our interior and exterior design elements. And on one night, stood in our kitchen and said, well, you know, everything's a competition. To say we were dismayed would be an understatement.

My husband and I spent many years collecting vintage furniture and other items to create a distinctive home. It has been a labor of love. Six months ago, we installed a unique garage door unlike anything in the neighborhood. Life from the Path, within three months, she installed the exact same one. Are we wrong to find it crass and disrespectful? We no longer want to spend time with them, but don't want to completely sever the connection because they are neighbors, and we also have some mutual friends. Moving is not an option. This is our home. What should we do? Stop being childish. Prideful. Prideful. Arrogant. Two things.

One, I would direct you to the Jim Carrey, Ron Howard, how the Grinch Stole Christmas movie in which you and Martha Mayhew are are battling each other on your Christmas lights display and see how ridiculous you feel after that. Yeah. Yeah. Two, be unoffendable. Ben and I keep talking about this. Freaking be unoffendable. Like, is it stupid? Yeah. Is it childish that they did that? Yeah. Is it ridiculous that they came into your kitchen and said something, well, everything's a competition, which there's a good chance you might have taken out of context to be honest about the situation. Yep. But, like, this is something that, yes, means a lot to you and can still mean just as much. Like, you don't have to, like, give up on this just because, like, they're doing the same thing. Whatever. Be unoffendable. Enjoy your home. Yes. Yeah. You built that home. Super excited about your distinct garage door and go, look. We made such a great choice. Martha across the street loved it too. Who cares what curtains they have? Enjoy yours. Don't you don't you feel like see, this it's just a it's a lack of humility. Because, like, if I did the same thing, I I had this sweet garage door, I'm like, there's none like it in all the lands. And then ridiculous thoughts. Three months later, someone puts up the same garage door. I don't go, that looks just like mine. I go, apparently, I'm not as great as coming up with distinct design things as I thought I was. Yeah. Back to the drawing board. Right. I mean, I I I do hate to hate to burst the bubble here, but there's no way there's only one custom garage door Right. In all the lands that belongs to you. All we're talking about is that someone

who is not within whatever route you take to the grocery store and to work does not have the same garage door. But, like, there's likely one within spitting distance of your place. You just don't happen to go that way. Right. And so yeah. It's just it's just super arrogant. That looks like a carriage door from a castle, but it's a garage door. Wow. And you can make a sign. Start monogramming everything. And if they put the same initials on everything, you'll know they really are stealing You know what you should do, friend? Once again, you're losing all the the comedy fun in this. You should change out all your lights or something. It's terrible. You know what saying? Yes. Double down. Yeah. Get yourself a gargoyle. I think you're finding distinct furniture off of, like, really, like, bougie websites and stuff and spending $1,100 on a nightstand. Go to Goodwill. Yeah. Start grabbing the stuff that's $2 that you can't even bring it up to the to the counter. You've gotta rip off that weird piece of paper and then bring it up and go, I'd like to purchase this now. Yeah. Like, I guarantee you they will not find those and go, yeah. We're gonna find that Goodwill nightstand. You can change all your eyeballs out to them fake flame looking eyeballs. You know what I'm saying? Like, you're gonna everything to lava lamps in your house. That will be double down on whether or not they actually are willing to do it too. Hold on a minute. Like, is there any is there no reason to be subversive to this? Like, let's say let's say they weren't your friends first. Yeah. And you happen to meet this couple, and let let's just lay it out there. That you get along with them. They share your interests. Fight. Taste in decorating. Live in your vicinity. Most people would go jackpot. Yeah. How dare you get that same weird photo from that Buca de Beppo's on the other side of town? Would you be just as offended, like, if you got a new car and then your neighbor took a ride and he's like, I love this car, and then bought the same car? No. No. I feel like, heck yeah. Malibu's for life. Yeah. Yeah. This it's it is kind of I mean, maybe

I don't know. It's odd that, like, you would find a thing and then someone would really appreciate it and you should be flattered, right, that they would like to to basically say great things about you by copying everything that you're doing. Right? Like, that's pretty great. Yeah. Yeah. I think of think of any famous designer. Let's take Isaac Mizrahi as an example. Absolutely. K. I know his work. And and the the Chip and Joanna Gaines. K. Also I picked out people who have collections at Target. The very nature of their situation is they design something. People go, hey, man. I'd like that exact thing. And And then someone pays them a lot of money to develop that exact thing so that literally thousands of people can also have the exact same thing in their place. And that was all based off of, like, really unique collections that were at, like, Milan three years ago and stuff like that. Like, it's all trickled down to make you buy a specific red. Yeah. I I yeah. You're a part of a machine no matter what you do. You're just Zeitgeist is real. You're thinking this whole thing you're just taking this whole thing wrong. And never mind. When I was in college, one of the professors told us told us that as as a preacher, just

just know that if you do something, a lot of people start doing it. Like as in like if you grow a beard, you start looking around, pretty soon everyone's gonna have beards. You grow a certain hairstyle or a certain tie, whatever. Yeah. And I started playing with that as a young young preacher, and it was amazing how often it was like, it just totally it totally is true. Dan, is that where the wacky shirts came from? Maybe so. Like, you started off wearing flowers just to see how much of your combination would have flowers within the I first recognize that shirt. That's a flattery. That's that's a word. It is. It's not like I never went and said, take off that shirt. That's a Hudson original. Shave your beard. You're right, though. I did grow a beard because you had one. So I I appreciate that. That. No one would say that. I mean, but but it just you you just look at it and go, hey. That's kinda cool. Yeah. I wanna do that. And then and then I would, you know, do the goatee. I'd change it around, and all of sudden, everybody would start it's a number of times through my life I've done that and just seen it spread. It's like, it's kinda fun. I'm trying be in my play. Funny. I'm trying so hard to imagine a universe that I can, like, empathize with this person and not look at them as a caricature. This is Like, I'm trying really hard. Garage door, Randall. Yeah. What does that conversation even look like? Distinct. Give me one adjective you would say about my garage door. Distinct. As I live in my suburban community.

We we all have the same house plan. Three houses down built by the exact same dude that built my place, but I have a Venetian vault. I live in a Triton home and have a painting of a The yearly collection that you've been you've been collecting over the last x number of years was a labor of love, and they replicated it within three months of moving in. I'm just saying it may not be as distinct as you're putting forth. It took me twenty five years to get all this stuff. Oh, really? Turns out it's from IKEA, and I was really just a phone call away. I think I think my wife got mad once because we painted our house. I'm like, the next year, the neighbors painted theirs exact same color, and they're like, she's all mad. I'm like, who really? Who who cares? They brought over swatches looking at your house. She thought. I'm like, if they did. I'm robin's egg blue. Yeah. This is the exact figure. 60073

at Lowe's. I'm a grab it. Okay. What do you what what what's the secular response? K. Secular says, I understand why you are frosted and need to distance yourself. Who wants to be close to someone who considers quotes everything to be a competition? Perhaps it will it's not even very good competition. You're buying the exact same thing. Right? You're, like, basically saying, I brought a I brought a bat. I I'm gonna get a bat. Exactly. I spend the exact same amount of money as you did. Yeah. Oh, how competitive you are. I'll bet $530. I will also bet $530. The worst price is right ever. It's not a good competition. Perhaps it will lessen your frustration to remember that imitation is sincerest form of flattery Gosh. While you learn to accept things you cannot change, like an alcoholic. Wow. Of course, it is in your best interest to keep things cordial, but it might be better if you no longer invite this woman into your home.

Sell your home immediately. Move it. Divorce your friends. Yeah. You can't come in. Says. Through my carriage garage door. You may enter during enter my master craft. I'd like to make a door. Retail therapy. I bet they got the same mailbox. I tell you that. Oh, I bet. You should create something. You'll get from scratch so that they can't. Yeah. Why why don't you plant some purple grass? You'll throw everybody off. Because otherwise, they're just copying your lawn too. Are they breathing? How dare you? I breathe. It's it's about time. Has hair now. Damn it. It's a rebate to hook and go fishing for a new identity. Like, the the everything that you have built up into this uniqueness of your home is very shallow and embarrassing. And this like, I don't know how old you are, but it feels like it's the time of life where you really need to decide that, like, if this is what you wanna be known for, it's gonna be out of style by the time you pass away. People are gonna rummage through your crap and make conversation around how dumb your stuff is. Like, this is not the thing to invest in. Give it up, like, directly. Here is how you break this finally. You go on to the Guinness World Book of Records, and you find the most ridiculous record that no one would ever want to beat. And you train for a few years as a labor of love, and then you beat that record, and then you get that certified, you get that plaque, and you put it up on your wall. There's no way they're getting that. Like, the quickest way to chug a liter of lemon juice. Like, you win that, they're never gonna beat that. There you go. I like it. You now have a unique unique home that they can't do. Oh gosh. Okay. Alright. I'm excited.

Here's what I've done. While we're talking, I feel like I wanted some more perspectives. And so we have three responses. Oh, no. One from suppose the AI has generated responses to this advice. One from the apostle Paul, two from John the Baptist Oh, gosh. And three from evil Lamech from from Genesis, the the descendant of Cain. Lamech's like, you should set their house on fire. You should have two wives like a Lamech. Here's what I'm a tell you. This is this is Two wives and let them compete. This is one of the core problems with the AI is there is no notion of it going, you know, I don't have enough to work with here. No. It just goes bulls riding. Your wish is my command. I'm an expert on this. Okay. Here we go. From Paul. We're gonna rate and see, see how well it did. My dear friends. I already love this. I am deeply saddened to hear of the distress you are experiencing in your relationship with your neighbors. Your feelings of frustration and disappointment are understandable given the situation you've described.

It is indeed disheartening when someone appears to lack consideration for the uniqueness and effort you have put into creating your home. Oh gosh. As followers of Christ, we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves even in challenging circumstances. However, this does not mean we should ignore or condone behavior that is hurtful or disrespectful. Oh. In addressing this situation, I would encourage you to approach it with grace and wisdom. Firstly, I urge you to pray for discernment and guidance in how to navigate this situation. Seek god's wisdom and peace as you consider your next steps. Secondly, I encourage you to engage in open and honest communication with your neighbors. Express your feelings to them calmly and respectfully, sharing how their actions have made you feel. Approach approach the conversation with a spirit of reconciliation. Oh, boy. Seeking understanding and a resolution that honors both parties. It is possible that your neighbors may not have realized the impact of their actions and may be willing to make amends. However, if they respond defensively or dismissively, it may be necessary to set boundaries to protect your own well-being.

In all your interactions, strive to embody the love and forgiveness that Christ has shown us. Remember that we are called to be peacemakers and to seek reconciliation where possible. Even if the relationship with your neighbors remain strained, continue to pray for them and demonstrate Christ like love in your actions. May the peace of god which surpasses all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus as you navigate this challenging situation with love and prayers, Paul. Sounds more like John. I don't know. Okay. What was weird about it, it's like

it feels like a mix between something Paul would say and then some secular wisdom. Right. Yes. Exactly. Good. Yeah. And then Paul and then secular wisdom. Right. Exactly. I could understand how that could be frustrating be dealing with that situation with your neighbors. Can you, Paul? Yeah. Can you, Paul? I should've I should've urge you, brothers in Christ. That's what I'm saying. Like, almost direct quotes from Paul. Right. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And then Letter structure from Paul. Yeah. Okay. Here we go. Oh, jeez. John the Baptist. So wait. One one out of 10, how would you rate AI's rendering Paul? First chance, that's a, like, a six to seven. I was gonna say six. Yeah. That's I I was gonna say, like, a a a six to half, seven because of the the secular part that brings it down. But but he has some good The pieces that I would identify as Paul were very specifically Paul. Yeah. So Okay. Here we go. Same same inquiries from John John the Baptist. It's almost cartoonish. Here we go. It opens with

repent. For the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Of course. Exclamation point. That's the opening. And then it goes, my friends. So, of course, AI goes, well, John said this. Right? John the Baptist was big on this one. He's gonna start with it. Okay. My friends, it is with a heavy heart that I hear of the turmoil that has arisen in your relationship with your neighbors. Such matters of worldly competition and strife are not fitting for those who seek to prepare the way for the Lord. Hey. Oh gosh. Get him, John. The mice droppings through every bit of this. Consider this. Is it not the nature of the world to covet and imitate? Oh, We are called to be set apart, to be lights in the darkness shining forth the glory of God. Your labor of love and creating a distinctive home is commendable. But remember that true beauty lies not material possessions, but in the purity of heart and righteousness of spirit. Wow. Nevertheless, it is understandable that you feel disrespected by your neighbor's actions. In such situations, it is crucial to examine our own hearts and motives before taking action. Have you harbored any resentment or pride that may hinder reconciliation?

Examine yourselves and repent of any sin that may have contributed to the discord. Oh, man. I'm liking this, John the Baptist. This one's Here we go. As for your neighbors, approach them not with bitterness or anger, but with humility and love. Express your concerns to them honestly and respectfully, seeking reconciliation and understanding. Show them a love of Christ even in the face of adversity. Remember the words of the prophet Micah. He has told you, o man, what is good, and what does Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness? Oh, that is solid, man. Seek just here we go. Seek justice with mercy, kindness with humility, and walk in the way of righteousness. For in doing so, you will honor the Lord and bring glory to his name. Prepare the way of the lord, my friends.

Bringing it back around. I like I like that it's not a distinctive act of his. It's propaganda that he spreads out. Prepare the way of the lord, my friends, and let your lives be a testimony to his grace and truth. Repent. For the kingdom of heaven is at hand, exclamation point, your servant in Christ, John the Baptist. He's like a he's like a amusement park robot Right. That, like, restarts his phrase over and over again. Repent. I got nothing. Repent. Okay. M transmission. I give it Repent. I give it an eight. I was gonna say seven and a half to eight on that one. Yeah. That was pretty solid. He's still kinda milk toast, though. Yes. I I mean, so I'm gonna I'm gonna still go down to six and a half. Okay. Alright. Because of that. On Paul toasting. With the Paul? Matt is gonna get his head cut off on that one. Okay. Okay. Do they they repack? Okay. My the last request also managed to be a number of paragraphs

is do the same thing as if you are Lamech from the book of Genesis. No. No. Alright. My brethren, in the lineage of Cain I, Lamech. What a qualifier. Have seen many trials and tribulations. The struggles between man and his fellow have been ever present since the days of our forefather, Adam. It is within this context that he offer my perspective on the matter you have presented.

The the emulation and invitation displayed by your neighbors are not unfamiliar to me. Oh my gosh. In a world marked by the stain of sin, envy and rivalry often rear their ugly heads. Yet as descendants of Adam, we are called to rise above such base inclinations and strive for righteousness. Your concerns about the actions of your neighbors are valid. It is indeed distressing when one's efforts to create something unique and meaningful are disregarded or replicated without acknowledgment. However, in addressing this issue, it is important to approach it with wisdom and discernment. Consider the example of our ancestor Cain, who allowed jealousy to consume him and commit the grievous sin of murder.

Let let not your hearts be hardened by resentment or bitterness. Instead, seek reconciliation and understanding. Speak to your neighbors with gentleness and humility, expressing your feelings honestly yet without malice. Perhaps they aren't aware of the impact their actions have had on you, and a heartfelt conversations may lead to reconciliation. Furthermore, remember the words of the Lord spoken through Moses. You shall love your neighbor. Oops. He'll be born later. He says, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. Strike two. What? The the

hold on. You know, that old quote from Moses? I'm gonna respond. Three. Okay. Hold on. Let me finish this out, and then we're gonna give AI a chance to correct itself. Let love guide your actions and attitudes even towards those who have wronged you. In all things, trust in the mercy and justice of the most high. He sees the hearts of men and will reward righteousness. Remain steadfast in your faith and continue to walk in the path of righteousness. May the lord grant you wisdom and peace as you navigate this situation. With sincerity, Lamech. Oh, jeez. No. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. I was gonna say that's a low score. Okay. Hold on. Hold on. Let's see. We got we're we contest Lamech in two ways. Right? First, Moses did not say to love your neighbor

Remember the golden rule. As yourself. Also, Lamech was a prideful beast of a man. A prideful, arrogant, bigamist who tussled

with His neighbors. Yes. Neighbors. Please, hold on. Regenerate the response. Not as you not as

what you would consider good advice, but in Lamech's voice, I want the actual advice we believe Of Lamech. Lamech would have given. Let's see what AI has to say about that.

It's weirdly capable sometimes, though. So but weird. What? Okay. Okay. Okay. For some reason, it got, like, super casual. It goes Hey, friends. It opens up with, hawk. So you've got some trouble with your neighbors, do you? Well, let me tell you. I've had my fair share of dealings with folks around here. Can't say I'm surprised to hear about your little predicament. Listen up, friend.

When it comes to dealing with people who rub you the wrong way, you've gotta show them who's boss. This is the worst version of the screw tape letters ever. Point in sugarcoating it. If they're copying your style, it's because they see something worth copying. So take it as a compliment, but don't let them walk all over you. Now I ain't saying go start a fight or nothing, but you gotta stand your ground. Let them know you ain't you ain't gonna be messed with. If they wanna play dirty, you can play dirty too. Keep an eye on them. Watch their every move. And if they step out of line again, well, you know what to do. But but remember, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Don't burn bridges unless you absolutely gotta. You never know when you might need them for something down the line.

This is the best part. So buck up. Show some backbone, and don't let nobody push you around. That's the Lamech way. That's the Lamech way. Oh. Okay. That did it. That that improved. Yeah. It really did. Somehow, that weird New Jersey conversationalist dad of a high school bully. That's

the shirt. The shirt this week is That's the layman way. And the back says, book up. Listen to me, wives of Lamech. Okay. Oh, man. Okay. Two out of three ain't bad for good, like, positive scores for the most part. That's that's classic. We're gonna have to do that more often. To laugh from the past. I don't I don't although the AI did a pretty good job the last time we asked for a good advice, I guess I didn't ask it the straight question. Right. I insisted that it give out these answers in the voice of these random biblical characters. I think random biblical character AI advice is a good Right. That's entertaining. We should get real obscure with it at some point in time. That sounds fun. Yeah. Okay. You wanna do one more? Yeah. Let's do one more. Okay. Here we go. Dear life from the path.

I lost my beautiful mother six years ago. While, of course, I miss her terribly, something else has been bothering me that I'm having trouble getting over. I allowed my cousin on my dad's side of the family to come to the hospital to see me and pay her respects, which didn't bother me. It's what occurred next that I have a big issue with. When my cousin left the hospital, she jumped straight on Facebook and posted for everyone to see, RIP, aunt Sally. Everyone who was friends with my mom saw the post, which meant she announced my mom's passing before I had ever even had time to process it at all. I was extremely hurt, angry, sad, and shocked that she would do that. It still bothers me as it's not something that can be undone. I was still lying beside my mom crying and trying to say goodbye to her when my phone started blowing up with messages and notifications. How can I get past the betrayal I feel? I've had very little contact with that cousin since.

You have every right to be upset. Mhmm. You definitely do. I feel haven't we had this situation before? Probably throughout the year somewhere. Talked about someone people who are, like, beating you to the punch with the death Yeah. Information. Right. Yep. You have every right to be upset. Like, there's no doubt about it. Your your cousin probably didn't think about it like that. Like, they were prob they that's their aunt. I I doubt they were being malicious with their intent and going, I got to, you know, announce this before you did, or trying to get either Clout or Simba thinking or you got a chance to exactly. They probably weren't thinking at all. It was just something that they they wanted to express to the world, and they probably would have done the same if a dog passed away or the same if, you know, a friend or a celebrity did it. There's a level of of very personal

hurt that exists here that you have every right to feel, and I think that, you know, if if you ever had the kind of relationship where this is something that you could have talked to said cousin about, I think it would be beneficial to have that conversation. I I'm not super advocating for just bringing up old hurts and then going, you know, you hurt me six years ago and did this blah blah blah, but, like, from the perspective of of asking that cousin to sit down and kinda talk through it, not from a blaming perspective, but so that you can have the chance to finally air it out and express how it made you feel, I think that's fair. So, like, if you approach that conversation from the perspective of, like, hey. This seems like it was far off, and it may not be that important to you, but, like, let me tell you how this made me feel, and I've really been thinking it for the last couple years, versus, like, how dare you? I've never healed from this because you're awful. Blah blah blah. Like, there's there's an adult and an appropriate way to go through this. And even more so for yourself, I believe that opening up on that and explaining that past grief

may help you overcome it, because I think that's ultimately what you're trying to do. You're absolutely right. You can't change the past. There's nothing you can do to fix it, but you can definitely grieve the thing that happened and move forward. Yeah, I'd probably differ a little bit, just a little bit. One, I'd say don't let it define, don't let that incident define your grief with your mother. Yeah, right, that's fair, Totally fair. And I would also say that I wouldn't bring it up because why just make it worse?

Why open up? I mean, you can't change it. And so let's say she begins bawling and says, I'm so sorry. Well, okay, now both of you feel bad. What did it do? How did that help anything? I think you just need to get yourself over that and focus your attention on grieving your mom. She had a long life and you had a relationship and and that's the center thing. Whether you five minutes later told people, I mean, nobody nobody it's just that's irrelevant to to to what happened. That's fair. I understand the hurt at the same time. I mean, yeah. But Yep. Can see where you come from. Yeah. I I I would say, man, gotta you've gotta you've gotta figure out how to move on and and and have

some healthy grieving. Yeah. Yeah. Obviously, there's nothing you're going to do about now. Yep. And if you assumed best intent, you know, you might you might look at that a little different. Like, I don't think anyone can deny that that there couldn't have been a more callous move. Right? But people aren't at their best Yeah. When rough things are happening. And, like, you in perspective, you would look at it and go, well, if anybody's not gonna be at their best, it's gonna be me. It's my mom. Yep. You know? And so but that doesn't mean that, like, cousin on the dad's side is probably not operating in their best either. Yours is your your grief is way more understandable, and the situation you were in was way more like, people would look at it with a more forgiving eye. But that doesn't mean that cousin Sally or whatever is still like, she's acted inappropriately, and maybe she knows it. Now she's embarrassed about it, or maybe she don't. Could be completely oblivious to the fact that's even a problem. Right. Yeah. But at the end of the day, like, you're chaining yourself to it. That's the big problem. Right? You are you're you're a slave to a one thing that happened, and, like, it's one of those slavery options where you don't have to stay there if you don't want to. Yeah. Okay.

I can't we did we get a sense for how old these folks were? No. No. 34. No. Yeah. Dan says 34. Okay. Mom passed away six years ago. I'm guessing she was an adult when mom passed away. So Yeah. I I would guess at least late twenties. Yeah. Okay. Segular says, please accept my sympathy for the loss of your mother. In this Internet age, it's not unusual for people to post their feelings online. Your cousin may have been venting rather than intending to make a formal announcement of your mother's passing. The problem with posting is that once it's on there, it's out there for everyone to see and to react to. I do think this is something you should discuss with your cousin who may not have realized how her online sentiments affected you on that sad and stressful day. You deserve an apology for her insensitivity. I I don't think the question is whether you deserve one or not. Like, yes, you could get an apology. The question is is, like, if you don't get one, do you still wanna stay chained to that radiator? Right? I mean, gone from that without Yeah. I mean, if if you getting a if you receiving an apology is a prerequisite

for you finding freedom from anything, then It's gonna be rough life. You should live next to wherever you're chained to because that's where you're gonna stay. Yep. I think that's fair. Alright. You're listening live for the Path. Thanks for hanging on with us this week. We really do appreciate it. If you have any feedback on the show, comments, questions, suggestions of a biblical character you wanna hear advice from from Malachi. We're going Malachi next round. Hit us at the Bob Eisenhower live from the Path of Complaint Line (515) 517-0085. Call or text. We would love to hear from you. And just give us anything you wanna tell us there about the show. In the meantime, be faithful in means. God will handle the ends. You've been listening to Live From The Path.