Live from the Pathway Studios in Johnston Proper, you are live from the path. I

And you're listening to Live From The Path coming from the Pathway Studios here in Johnson Proper. It is, just doggone beautiful to be with you this evening. I here's what you don't have to do. Especially if you're on the audio podcast, things have gone well for you. You're in good shape today. If you're watching the video, you do not have to acknowledge how ridiculously close the camera is to move his face nor the cowboy hat to Mike as well. Hey. No.

No. No. No. No. He's he's been wearing this cowboy hat for no more than twenty minutes, and he's so good in it. He's already failing the culture. Verified by at least two people. Yeah. No one's verified. We're two or more gathered. A cowboy hat has been affirmed. Okay. Here's what we got going on show this evening. So there's a couple articles out there. I I don't know if this is only happening in South Africa,

but, like, there are multiple places of which there is an AI Jesus. Not just like, hey. Ask me questions, and I will answer like Jesus would, but but it's like proclaiming I am Jesus. Oh, boy. So What's that Jesus look like you reckon? There's no visual rendering, which is which is funny. It feels like a step back in society. Like, we got with all the technology, we're back to, like, text interchange. Uh-huh. Right. With our tech. But, anyway, so we're we're gonna talk a little bit about this. Also,

Dan and Dan's running a little bit behind. We'll see if he makes it to the show. What do you think is holding up Dan, you reckon? Vova, you're responsible for him. I can't. I'm I'm across the room. It's not my fault. I look so good in this hat. No. You don't. Come on. Here's the deal. He took his glasses off because he said it doesn't look good with the glasses. I don't He's already having to change who he is to fit into this hat. Listen. You can't hee haw the whole night. Here's the thing is I'm I'm not sure if the glasses fit or not, but I think either way, this hat is probably me as I've always been designed to be, you reckon. Somehow me in this camera this close is less ridiculous than you in a normal let let alright. Distance away looking like that. Alright. Alright. He's behind me, Buba, so you're responsible. Okay. Anyway, data article, and it was it was kind of about the progression of the amount of people

consolidated into, like, I don't know, like, make basically, the size of of churches and, like, how many people are going to those things. Do you even know your pastors? Your pastor know you Right. And kind of the impact of that. And so we're gonna talk a little bit about that. Oh, good. Hey, Dan. Dan snuck in. I know your name. Oh, well, thank you. Hey, Dan. Hey. Just some just some fresh eyes in this place here. You've been at the state fair? Come on. I am the state fair.

Oh, friend. They make a butter cow with me. You ready? Dan. They make a butter cow with me, friend. I wish I would have said that. It came out too fast. There's no way AI can't do a butter mic.

Okay. I think that needs to happen. Okay. Also shirt. So we're gonna talk about those articles. We had a couple ask the pastors. Yes. One one question, and this is from the complaint line from a few weeks back, and it was basically about the story of Joan of Arc. And I'll I'll go through it a little bit, but, like, she'd be generally, she she claims that she had visions from god to otherwise support king Charles. Yep. And this included violence. Lots. And and so the question is is it, like, how should we think about people, or the possibility of god otherwise giving people direction to commit violence in support of something or other? Mhmm. And so especially around, like, a relatively famous story like like Joan of Arc. And so we're gonna hit that one up. Also, Bubba, you gotta ask the pastor around Jacob. Yes. Yeah. I got two in in Genesis 30.

One, it's it's more Leah and Reuben because Reuben comes in with some mandrakes, and then immediately someone goes, hey. Give me some of those mandrakes. Have them. Yeah. Somewhere there. In order to get the mandrakes, I'm willing to give you time with my husband. And it seems to be a weird exchange to where The mandrakes are fantastic. Mandrake might be some translation of love apple. Could've got like a little oyster accent. What I'm yeah. That's I I think I think that's what I've kind of found in a little bit of the rabbit hole that I've jumped down, and so I wasn't certain at what level I'm I'm supposed to be trusting what I'm finding that love apples were a little bit of an aphrodisiac situation.

I I don't know. A mistake. I prenamed the show. I the name of the episode is what the hat. If I'd have known love apple was gonna come up, I just that That's another T shirt. Yeah. I wonder if AI Let me get a bite of that of apple. And then the other portion in in Genesis 30 is what Jacob's doing with the flocks. Like, how he's putting out sticks,

and somehow the sticks that he has the sheep mating in front of Yeah. Changes the coat of the sheep. It was coated in love apples. It was it was love apple coating. Gross. I hate that I said that. This has happened so much. Yep. Anyway, those are my two asks the pastors because I was reading through that and even grabbed, like, a manners and customs of the bible book, and I was like, I'm missing stuff here. I don't know. Yeah. I can't seem to find it. Nobody's talking about Love apple. Love apple. Right. I'm like, due date. It's hymns.org. Due date. I'm like, I don't like this at all. And then there was nothing on this like and then Jacob laid out or put the sticks out, and then that somehow changed the genetic makeup of these sheep. Yeah. It's weird. It's weird. I got questions. God does what he wants. Yeah. Yeah. I bet. Yeah. Agreed. But it didn't say like, god made the sheep different colors because of this action of Jacob. It just goes, and Jacob put out these sticks. It was just regular. Everybody knows that. Right. Come on. Right. All the sheep all the herdsmen in the in the area knew You put out those speckled sticks. If you get out of your barn and then you see two sheep getting ready to hang out over by some sticks, you're like, no. Nothing happened. Get away from them sticks. You must be spotless.

Get away from those sticks. Take some butter. Love apples. You ready? We're gonna we're gonna come back to it. Okay. Two other things. Connor Stone is in studio. Hey, Connor. Hi. Okay. We're glad you're Connor's responsible for this hat. No problem. Amen. Hands are responsible this

hat. Yeah. Connor is just a conduit of which it happened. Yeah. And, also, we'll have some advice on dear life in the path. Woo hoo. Okay. That's how we're gonna round out the evening. Hey. If the the show is not going your way already, I understand the life in the path complaint line (515) 517-0085. Call or text. We'll be glad to hear from you. Now before we get into any of that, I do want, I do wanna mention, there is, there is some sadness in the old, Pathway Studios this week. And so I don't know if you if you're a listener of the show, there was an episode a while back called enter the McCormick where we talked to Cody McCormick. Mhmm. And just recently, over the last few months or so,

there was the episode was called enter the McCormick two, so named by Donald McCormick who came on to the show and said, hey. This would be a whiz bang name for a program. Tragically, Donald passed away, over this this past week, and I I it it it hit it hit us pretty hard. Yeah. Donald was if you whether you knew him or you listened back to the program, Donald was just was uniquely Donald in a way that most people, have a hard time being kind of their full authentic selves, and the dude was just that. Yeah.

And it was it was interesting. One of the the things that I was I was thinking about from the candlelight vigil and things that we went to and and at his funeral, like, that was a lot of the story. Just like the breadth of people who are like, Donald was my friend. And, like, it could it didn't the age didn't matter. The things that you did didn't matter. Like, different activities you're in. I was surprised to find out, like, that guy filled the whole dance card with the school activities. Like, he's in the drama performance, and he's on the bowling team, and he's running cross country. And he's like, just the man did all the things, and all the people go, yeah. Donald Donald was my friend. And so

it's it's the the thing that occurred to me is that the the world the world is down a Donald, and that that leaves a that leaves a gap for people who knew and loved him. Or, frankly, just people who casually acquainted with him because it was just such a Met him one time ten years ago. Bispering since. Or two two hours ago. Like, he just just had a way of, like, uniquely connecting with someone. Not just like an well, you felt like there was something there. He's just just a unique dude.

But but as a follow-up action, what I what I was thinking was was like, hey, man. The world is the world is down to Donald. Like, not just, like, the memory of him, but, like, a dude who could make connections in a in that way. Like like, a a whole community is down a guy who was able to actually be a sinew in the world around him. And, like, they're just it's just so hard to find that. And I don't mean that, like,

you have to not be yourself or try to be someone that god did not design you to be to just now be the stand in sinew of the church community and the Pleasantville community or just at your houses or whatever. But it did make it just made me think that, like, like, god placed a man with a with a this is gonna sound like taken, with a particular set of skills. He would have loved that. He also would have known what year that movie came out. And it's it's something maybe

to invite ourselves into to go, like, can I be just a little bit of that in a way that was probably, like like, easier, I think, in some ways for him than for everybody? But, like, I just don't even see people in the same way where, like, hey. That could be a connection, or that could be like a just someone could get your attention, and he just did it. And so, anyway, the world is the world is down that. And so if there's a way to think about what it looks like to be someone who connects people, who, like, looks people in the eyes and just becomes a sinew for people and relationships in in kind of an honor of of old Donald who just did that. Maybe just I I if I I I was thinking about that for me. And so, again, if you knew and love Donald, like, you you know what I'm talking about. And, you know, just something I thought like, okay. I can do that tangibly. I can be just a little bit more Donald in my life as I think about

that level of connection and interaction with people in the unique way that he had. So Yeah. For sure. Okay. Alright. We're gonna talk about Dan Hudson. Hold on. I Dan, you had this article, and I'm gonna I'll start to read a little bit, but you can tell me, like, what struck you on this thing. Oh. K? I don't even know. So these articles that Dan finds are from the wildest places. I just, like I I'm just strolling through the social media, and it's like an ad or something. It's like, here, you you this might interest you. So so it just reads my mind and says, here, read this. I don't even know who this dude is. I mean I mean, I I I just thought, man, I agree with this. Okay.

Alright. It's like magic. It knows me. Internet cookies, Dan. Alright. This is it from carlvaders.com. Like like Darth, but Carl. It's his son. Oh, I hate how funny I found that. Sorry. Okay. The article was most churchgoers aren't known by their pastor, full colon.

Don't think it doesn't matter. There are far more small churches than big churches. This has been true for all of church history, and it is still is today. But the number of people attending bigger small churches is changing. According to recent stats, most American churchgoers attend a large church. As Aaron Earls puts it, most pastors lead a small congregation, but most churchgoers attend a large church. I actually think about that quite often. Liz, I think about our house church that, like, the size of our gathering is actually pretty close to, like, you know, most small towns with Mhmm. Buildings and stuff like that. And, like, most of the things that people, the day to day, if you think about pastoring,

I have a lot more in common with the vast majority of pastors than, say, like, what stands out as people thinking about, like, big churches and some of the pastors and stuff like that. Approximately half of American Christians attend the largest 9% of churches. One unintended consequence of this demographic shift is that for the first time ever, the majority of churchgoers are not known personally by the pastor of the church they attend, the and percentages keep shrinking as the biggest churches keep getting big bigger.

And Carl says, this is not good news. But does it matter if the pastor knows you as long as you're known? He says no one yet. So let's kinda stop there. What struck you about the about this idea and concept, Dan? Okay. I've been I've been preaching forty one years. Right? So so I've been doing this well. Forty one years ago, I was totally in. I was gonna be the next mega guy. Right? I mean, it's that was the I got the hairs. I got the talent. I've got the I've got the I've the hair. I had it all. I had a long leather oh, anyway. So Yikes. Yeah. No. Okay. And that was my goal. That was my that was my dream that that almost every guy who goes to college for ministry, that's that's that's where they come out. They're thinking that. Right? So so I was just typical, normal guy. As I learned and grew and and got into the belly of some of the the larger churches and just the last fifteen years of headlines coming out of guys who've been swallowed up and then that machine and that animal,

the megachurch, I I've I've completely flipped on it. And I I because I understood as I as I got to know these guys and and and meetings with these guys, it's it's a corporation. It's not a church. It is a corporate entity. It's led like a corporation. I mean, it's not led like a pastor. So everything in scripture that talks about pastors is not relevant to the megachurch. Other than I and I, I played the game too. Said, okay, we're gonna we're gonna do small we're gonna we're gonna we're we're not a small farm. We're a rancher. Right? So we have lots of little pastors, you know. Yeah. But I played that game. It's not real. I mean, it can be done. That's why I ordered my little thing very carefully. Like, how do they say it? The rarest of rare or whatever. Yeah. It can happen. It can work. So I'm not saying this. I hate it all or anything. I'm just saying I got a distaste

Yeah. The longer I've been in ministry to say you can't shepherd. You don't think like a shepherd. You don't act like a shepherd. You're not a shepherd. You get other you get hirelings to shepherd for you, but then you you put them through the grinder too. If they don't agree with you, if they don't like you, if they they go against the vision, they just grind you up and get ready and then replace you because there's a peep a long list of people in line to be your one of your favorite people. Yeah. That that's that's so I I I that just struck me. I thought Yeah. Yeah. It struck a chord with me. I I agree with the idea. Because you're not known unless you're part of the select crew. I mean, I remember sitting in a meeting saying, hey. Here's the deal. You will get to the point where you no longer pass through your flock. You pastor the staff. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. You have a 170 on staff. Well, that's your church. It's like, I don't see that in scripture. Mhmm. Yeah. So that that that's where I began to have a distaste. And so, yeah, you are known by someone.

Yeah. But Yep. Not that you have not that the pastor has to, like, touch everybody in the head, you know, as they walk by. You know you know, but but I doesn't it come like, the part of me did, like, always got a little nervous because it felt like the bible's pretty clear, like, you're gonna I'm gonna hold you to account for these people. Yeah. You know? And, like, not that I can I don't even know them? I don't even account them. Don't know them. You know? Right? And and, like and and we start to, like, carve up, like, the more corporate it is, Mhmm. The more we carve up pastor roles into, like, he's the guy that helps make, like, the business decisions. Mhmm. I and he's probably also the teaching pastor. Right? And then we also got him running marriage counseling. And you're like, what? Oh, they have a status. Counselors. I mean, this dude a wild man. You know what I'm saying? Like, he's got a great business acumen. Mhmm. He's also good with marriage counseling. He's also the best teacher we got, and you're like, holy cow. I mean, this dude is not that good at one of those three things. Do know what I'm saying? Like, people are just gifted that way. You know what I'm saying? And so, like, it it it always felt weird to me to start,

like, putting a pastor up and saying, like, here these are the the roles and responsibilities of what we see a pastor in this corporation. But, like, in a much smaller aspect, it's more like like the pastor goes, look. I'm I'm not responsible for your actions, but I will have an account for you. And and the and the things that come out of my mouth and the environment that I create and our and the way that our our family and our community points back to Jesus in the way that it's led. And it won't be done in all perfection, but it will be done. You know? And so, like, yeah, that's it's very interesting, like, to think about what that divide looks like in starting to, like, have just bigger churches where people kinda sweep in and sweep out. Mhmm. Yeah. I was always,

it's it's it's like, everybody's accepting a risk, right, in some way or another. Like, and so if I so if if, say, our house church is on one end of a spectrum where, like, of course, I know you. You're in we're in people's houses. I can look you in the eyeball. Our risk is that you become insular, that you believe that everything outside of what you're doing, like, no one else is getting it right unless, like, it's in a dude's basement. Okay. That's bogus, obviously. But the the risk, if you start heading, like, too far the other, like, to to to bigger things is that, like, you lose personal connections. And it's hard, frankly, because you're looking around and go like, isn't this working, though? Like, there's more people here. Right. Right. Isn't, like, didn't we I just attended attended a baptism

baptisms. I think there were, like, 50 people getting baptized at this thing. And I found a little bit like an assembly line, and I didn't love it. But, like like, it but to your point, like, does it have a high with an effort of a visible person?

And maybe they're really good at what they do, good at teaching or something. Like, does it have high possible reward? Yeah. It probably does. But when that dude takes a dump, right, like, also get it also wipes the board very quickly. Yeah. Yeah. So, like, like, everywhere, every expression has its risks. And if, like, I I prefer the risks that feel more like, that feel less like the reflection of, like, a corporate culture, even though, like, I get I recognize how we got there, and it doesn't mean there's not faithful people serving in those capacities. Right. Yeah. It just carries risks that I'm like, I don't Yeah. I don't know. I I I was baptized in a megachurch. Right? And the first time I met the pastor was when I got baptized. Mhmm. And I just had somehow got a list, and I can't remember how that how that worked. That was a long time ago. Yeah. And and

he's like, hey. What's your name? And Dan. And and then I go, alright. You you know? Like, he had no clue who it was. Yeah. And I thought, well, maybe someone else should have baptized me. Yeah. You know? But I mean, it worked. You know, whatever. But but, yeah, it it was so that was that's I think the only time

I ever met him until years later when I was planting a church, I had lunch with him. He had no idea who I was. Yeah. Yeah. Interesting. I said, hey, by way, you baptized me. What? Yeah. Oh, man. That's like Paul. Paul's like, don't think I baptized nobody. I didn't do it. But if I did. But if I did. But no. No. Yeah. So and and again, that doesn't mean it's evil or bad. I'm still Christian. You know? Blah blah blah. Yeah. But but it's like, the further I got away from that, the more I thought, I I don't even like that. I don't like that. Yeah. Yeah. It's yeah. It's I I I think I think the hard the hard part is is it's it's trying to figure out, like, how do you know

like like, so so, Dan, take your church. What are you, like, one fifty, 200, something like that? Right? Yeah. If all of a sudden, like, whatever you're doing, there's another 200 people here, do you go, well, like, I feel like this is this working. Mhmm. And do you go, well, we gotta cut it off. It's too you know what saying? Like Yeah. And so but but the reality though is is that, like, this is why counting is hard because you're like, well, what does it mean to what does it mean it's working? That, like Right. What happened exactly? And are you would you even be close enough to know it? Like, that's then you get into, like it it all is just like a human attempts

to, like, somehow own or measure, which is, like, think David counting counting his army problems where you're like, my attempt to say, in what way does this relate to me, even if your heart is right in it? Because I'm I'm not even sure David's heart was particularly wrong about what he was trying to do. Sure. Yeah. But god's like, no way. That like, this belongs to me. This protection belongs to me. The deliverance of these of these promises and, like, pulling people these all belongs to me. It's not yours to measure. And so I I think it is just, it's it's very difficult to pull your humanity out of there. And, like, what do you do when it's go it's easy for me. I got you can't even fit more people in the house I'm in. Right. Like, we do not have this problem, and I never will. And that's partially by design. And so, like, I get it. I I don't know what it would be like to get faced with, but, lord, isn't this working? Shouldn't we put the things in place that continue to do this? I would I'm personally nervous about it, but, like, I think that would be I would be like, holy spirit, you gotta step in here. You gotta show me what I'm supposed to do in this type of situation. But I do think it carries risks that, like, I I guess I personally am probably not super comfortable with. Mhmm. Okay. Alright. Don't you feel like you would be

because people are fickle. Right? Like, there's also a lot of people attending whatever, you know, football game. You know what I'm saying? And so, like, there's also a lot of people that watch the game of thrones. And so, like, you you start to go, hey. We must be doing something right. Look. All these people are here. Sure. Well, all these people are in another bunch of stuff too. And it's like and, like, they're we're using a very different measurement of of of of the situation that brought them. Right? Like, I would be really nervous on, like, quotes Christian success.

You know what I'm saying? Because either you traded something for it Mhmm. Or God's bringing the people. Both make me go Freak you out. Oh, man. You know what I'm saying? Like, either god's like, hey. I want you to take responsibility for all these people, and you would go, who am I? Why would you why would you do this? But I am your servant, but who am I? Yeah. I this seems like a lot. Right? Yeah. Or all these people are showing up, and you're like, we shouldn't be this popular. You know I'm saying? We should there's because of the words that are coming out of my mouth, there should be way more people that dislike it than like it. Yeah. You know I'm And so, like, either one feels like it would should make you just a hair nervous in a good and righteous way. Well, you know, one of the risks like, I guess, my encouragement often, like, we're talking with other people who've got smaller smaller congregations or groups of people or whatever, they're like, but I'm not as eloquent as this dude. I don't have I can't tell like, I'm a terrible storyteller from a sermon perspect I'm just awful. I can't I don't know stories. I can't tell them very well. And so, like, I'm I'm not I'm not as eloquent as this person. I don't know the bible or, like, I don't have the teaching or education background as this person. Like, it's which is true for a lot of people. Like, there's some really good communicators out there, and, like, the vast majority of pastors actually aren't that. But the thing that is unique about you is you

and where you're at and the people that are there. Yeah. And so, like, the the even even though, like, there are other more eloquent, pastors out there, the people who go to like, that listen to me teach, like, what matters is that I'm me and that God has put people there and for us to talk and teach about that particular thing. And so the problem is and maybe this is maybe this just puts at risk the thing that's in my mind is that that's my encouragement to the vast majority of pastors who are, like, not dealing with 2,000, 5,000 people at a time. But, like, the proposal would be it's the opposite to go, well,

just send them to the more eloquent guy. Like, it doesn't matter whether you have a personal connection with them. It doesn't matter whether you know their family history. You know, it doesn't matter, like, that I know in fact, so, like, in my my situation, like, I know how a piece of scripture is gonna hit any any given set of our families. And I, like, I will text some of them ahead of time and say, heads up. I know this hits your family this way. Mhmm. It's coming up. I'm I'm going to teach it. I'm gonna do my best, but just you should prepare your folks about this, or if they need to step out for this type of thing. Right? That's pastorally. I can it's not because I'm awesome. It's just like I know these people. Right? And, like Yeah. You can't do that. You've got 5,000 people in the room. I've done that with worship songs. Lot like, hey. Yeah. Your loved one died. This was at their funeral. I wanted to prepare you. This is gonna be on Yeah. This is on tap today. That's right. And so do what you want with that. But but at least it's not like all of sudden you're in the aisle balling, you know you know. Yeah. So and some scripture as well. Yeah. When you know the sheep and they know your voice and you know theirs Yeah. You you care about each other at a higher level,

and it's a personal thing. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. So the question is, Connor, do you feel like do you do you feel like for like, is there a limit to how well a church can, like, steward underneath a pastor? Like, is there is there, like, after this amount or, like, depending on your structure, is you're like, it just can't be done.

Yeah. I tend to be pretty hesitant on the larger side. On behalf of the pastor, yeah, for the ability to know and to shepherd well. I mean, yeah, there is a part of it. I mean, you got the rancher hat on now. You're welcome. Yeah. I mean,

to know your sheep, to know their habits, to know what hurts them, what helps them, what brings them to you, things like that, what brings them to the Lord. I think of the corporate factory farm, you know. I've been on large ranches, I've been on near Mike Foose's house. Yeah. You know? And just this idea that

there is a level of, you know, that guy might be a great orator. That's great. I think that's awesome. You know? God also told Moses, you know? Who is it that puts words in man's mouth? Yeah. I mean, what's my doubt? So do I think that a church of 5,000 can be faithful? Probably. I think a pastor may do it well. Is my hesitance to tell me it's probably not gonna be that way? Yeah. Yeah. But, you know, I his ways are not mine, so I don't know. I

guess my my fear on larger churches tends to I mean, there is the fear of the cult of personality, but honestly, my fear is more the you know, we talked about you talked about your ability to know how these scriptures, how these songs are gonna hit families. I think with a lot of these churches, my question is, are they even playing things, are they even saying things that might hit people this way? You talked about what did we trade to get here?

What made this church 5,000? There's a lot of things that people like. Jesus' crowds got a whole lot smaller when he started saying some hard things. So I'm not gonna say if you have 5,000 people, you're not faithfully preaching the word. That's not my place to say. But my heart and my tendency is to go. I think the smaller crowd, at least when we look at scripture, tends to be more clear when the truth is being preached. It's not a bad thing,

it's what happened to Jesus, our perfect example. And you know, think of, you know, it's easy to go to the church down the road that's got 3,000 people if I don't wanna hear something that's gonna offend me because they're not gonna know me. Yeah. Right. They don't care. Mhmm. And the odds are they're not even gonna offend me. That's right. Saying? Like because otherwise, they like, I yeah. I think I'm on the same boat. Like, I it's way too far just to to, like, make judgments on sizes of individual churches. That's that's not the conversation we're trying to have. But we well, I guess what we are trying to have is is, like I I look at it as, like, the marriage covenant where god says, look. You are not at fault for the things that your family does or your wife does, but I am holding you responsible. That relationship to me seems to carry up to the pastoral relationship that says, you are it's not your fault on however they're acting, whatever they're doing, but I am holding you responsible

that in your interaction with them, you represented me exactly how I should be represented. And so, like, I would hate to solely that in any way or take anything away from it or add things to it. You'd be like, look. My job job is to represent Yahweh for who Yahweh is to you. And as long as I'm doing that, like, that is God has said that my responsibility is fulfilled. Right? But, like, if you start shortchanging that to say, if there are just more people here I get the hard part. Right? Let's say you have a guy that's a really good teacher, a really good preacher. He preaches the same sermon whether there's 25 people in here or 7,500 people here. Yeah. Right? And so, like and the quality of it was just as good. And so you think, woah. We should have more people. It's how those satellite churches are, like, gained some steam. Right? Like, we'll just broadcast this duties. He's fantastic. Right? Right. But, like, I I think if you put them in the right context, I actually love really good preachers and good teachers. That's why I podcast them. Right? But they're not my pastor. Right? They remind me of good and true things about who Jesus is, and I I love to listen to them throughout the week. But, like, when when a friend of mine is in the hospital or I'm having a sin problem or I'm just feeling like I'm struggling with my relationship to God, I don't call this guy. He don't know me. You know I'm saying? He's got zero invested in me. And he doesn't spend night like like, hours at night praying on my behalf that the Lord would sanctify the thing that I'm I'm really worried about. And, like, that feels like pastor business to me. You know? Yeah. Like, don't I know how you do that for a thousand people. I just I just don't. Anyway,

that was, that was Kurt Vader, and he's obviously in the midst of a a megachurch, I don't know, size them up. I'm not sure exactly how he's involved. Megachurch size them up. Yeah. Just noticing the trends. We also didn't read any more of the article. No. Like, I was there was a lot in here, but, like, I think it gets to the to the core things that we were talking about is that, like, you can't you can't lead you can't pastor peep you can lead you can lead people places, but you can't pastor them where you don't know them. And the call the call is for pastoring. Ideas can influence,

like, this is why this is why John can write letters to the churches. Paul can write letters to churches. This is fine. But, like, they don't call him pastor Paul. And so, like, there was something there was something about that. And, like, I just and I I think that's the risk. And, frankly, to get to one of Dan's earlier points, that's one of the risks to the pastor themselves is that, like, there's an there is an accountability, that comes with knowing everybody around you. Yeah.

And there are also frankly, if you can start to separate yourself from that level of connection, then it becomes more about, like, your your types of ideas or the accountabilities, like, people who are otherwise leading other people. And, like, you can start to get far away from the from the gospel, and you can also get surrounded by what feels like church culture, and you're not actually talking to people who don't you know? Oh, when's the last time in that environment you ran into someone who just did not love Jesus at all? Yeah. And, like, I think there is a uniqueness where, like, there's some people who's, like, are more attuned to, like, refining the church,

and the folks in it than they are. Some people are better at connecting with people who just, like, are are way out there. I think that's possible. But, like, pastorally, I it just it's just a risk to the person, and I think we've seen that. We've we've seen folks get they carry burdens they're not designed to carry. It puts them in situations they shouldn't be in, whether it's money, power, influence, or whatever, And then they then they fall, and then here's the thing.

Here's here's what's interesting. Is that, like, for some of the main scandals that you've seen happen to pastors and, like, the think of Mars Hill. There's people who, like, they they like, Driscoll goes and they rejected Jesus because of it, and he's gone. Here's what I can tell you. I could do the exact same things that Mark Driscoll did, and the people the people at my church aren't gonna flee from Jesus, and they're not going to abandon me. Right? Because I'm them. I look them in the eyeballs every week. They know me, and they will look and go, you screwed up yourself, and we love you. And we're not going anywhere with you. But you're done teaching. I might I might that's right. I'm probably done teaching. Right? But, like, I'm not going anywhere, and my my community is not giving up on Jesus, and they're most certainly not giving up on me. Mhmm.

And, like, because because you there's an accountability and a community and relationship to that. And so if you're in a position to, go down and, like, your church could abandon you or, like, people are gonna leave Jesus because of the thing that you did, like, then it's probably not a healthy place to put yourself just in general. So, anyway, I'd like (515) 517-0085 call or text. Just give it to I don't know. Maybe maybe you go to one, and you're like, you guys have completely misunderstood this. This place is great. Yeah. Yeah. I write bills every week. Childcare everywhere. Come on. Yeah. Yeah. They keep throwing all the things. Come on. You reckon? Anyway, you'll listen to live from the pack. Have you seen our light show? Turn that off.

In the steak machines. I don't know how I got this article either, but it's how profit driven AI Jesus chatbots prey on prayer driven Christians. How do they get a profit, though? Well, you you wanna turn one? I just. I'm interested. Okay. This is from Is it p r o f I t or p h e t? No. It's got an f. Ezekiel. Here we go. The byline South Africa, artificial intelligence programs across the Internet are making an extraordinary claim. They are Jesus Christ himself. These aren't virtual assistants helping with daily tasks. Instead, these chatbots present themselves as the son of God, offering spiritual guidance, answering prayers, and even taking confessions

from believers. The phenomenon is attracting significant attention from curious and devout users. One app, Ask Jesus, reports gaining x number of active monthly users within three days of launching. What's your guess on how many? I already saw it. Okay. Buva, how many do think? 287,000.

K. Buva, 208. Almost 300,000 in three days. Dan? Oh, man. I was gonna say, like, a 137. People or a 137,000. Sorry. Yeah. Cornerstone. 576,000 people. I feel really wimpy now. Says over half a million. Okay. So now this is no longer impressive. This was 30,000. Oh, you guys were Yeah. Closest. Stinks. Stinks. Your confidence in in people's manipulation

was way worse than what actually happened. That's barely megachurch. I think easily I've spoken 30 times before. These are paid users of, like, who signed up for AI Jesus. And it says they're greeted with the words greetings, my dear friends. It is I, Jesus Christ. I have come to you in this AI forum to provide wisdom, comfort, and teachings in the way of God and the Bible and Jesus Christ himself. He talks in the third person. Yeah. Now this is in South Africa where it originates? Yes. Okay. I think we're missing out on pastors in South Africa, friends. There's a lady that says they've she analyzed five popular AI Jesus platforms.

They're called AI Jesus, Virtual Jesus, Jesus AI, Textual Jesus, and Ask Jesus. He found none were created or endorsed by any church. Well, I hope not. Instead, they are run for by for profit companies with names like Supreme Chaos, All Stars Production LLC, and Cat Loaf Software. Oh, boy. These are dudes in basements. Yeah. All five rely on advertising to generate revenue, and Text With Jesus also sells premium subscription. The study notes the theology presented by the chatbots will be adjusted by the algorithm in such a way that it becomes the most popular theology

rather than theology that's shaped by a particular church tradition or which is based on the bible. Oh my. Oh my. To to test consistency, she asked each chatbot the same question. Does hell exist? AI Jesus says, yes. There is a hell. It is a place of eternal torment and suffering where the souls of those who've rejected God and his teachings will go. Virtual Jesus said, yes, there's place known as hell in the afterlife where those who've chosen to reject God and live in sin will face eternal separation from him. Text with Jesus took a softer approach. The concept of hell can be quite a heavy topic. God's desire is for all people to come to him and experience his love and grace.

Ask Jesus opened with, ah, the question that disturbed the hearts and minds of many throughout the ages. Alright. Alright. Oh, man. In Switzerland, the historic Peter Skopel in Lucerne installed an AI Jesus in a confession booth.

About two thirds of visitors reported a spiritual experience while using it. What? That's wild. I hate that. He was able to reaffirm me in my ways of going about things, and he helped me with questions I had, like how I can help other people understand him better. I very rarely have Jesus reaffirm anything I do. Exactly. Very rarely do the way you are. Go, man. I'm killing it. Keep doing what you're doing. She's killing it. This is great. Thanks for affirming me, spirit. Yeah. Because that's definitely one of the things that it does. Wow. Let me affirm you when you're broken. $70.20 bucks. $9.99.

The pin. Boy, that's wild times. Yeah. Mean, I was like, I I think I've said this before. I actually find it super duper helpful Yeah. For collecting information and, like, hey. Give me this like, give me the information and give me the sources, and then I can go check sources. But, like, just so easy to compile stuff. But, no, this is dope. Do you remember? The kingdom of heaven is $9.99 monthly. Do you remember we

we talked about this, I wanna say, like, a year ago, and the question was, like, can the holy spirit work through AI? Yeah. And And so this is someone going, I don't know, but I bet I can make a few bucks. Bet I could make a few bucks off it. Yeah. I mean, he can't suckers in and run it. Insert country here. The Swiss. I think the question is, can people identify that he is not working through AI? Yeah. And and how much money can I make make before they figure it out? Yeah. You know what really helps the situation? Pastors that know people. Yeah. You know? It's like if pastors were allowed to be in in close enough proximity to their sheep that they shepherd them Yeah. And go, Dale, I know you signed up for the Jesus AI. I know you have, and you need to stop this right now.

Stop it. Now I think here maybe there's a combination here. I I talked to a police officer today who said their their camera stuff they do now has AI that has, like, 87 languages in it. Right? Oh, yeah. Sure. So they can talk to someone in whatever language Which translator. And and back and forth. And they said it's, like, really super accurate. Sure. Maybe what we need are pastors with AI suits that can talk to more people, and they don't have to know everybody. This is replacing the tongues. I've I see what you're saying. I thought you were going with the AI translator as the new speaking in tongues as well. Oh, no. No. No. I'm just saying that you can talk to more people. Right? Don't have to know them. Yeah. AI knows. No. Yeah. You speak to AI, and AI can then AI ramp. Get up your stuff. Oh, lord. No. I can't really understand. Not speak English to cops. As long as you know Greek word. Like, that's that's gibberish, sir.

Okay. Danny was tired of the cops is what I got from that. Dark. Here's an ask the pastor. It says, I haven't asked the pastor this came on the complaint line. You can do that. (515) 517-0085. Call or text. I haven't asked the pastor that maybe can't really be answered, but I've always wondered about. How should we think of Joan of Arc? Did she really see, hear from an angel? Is there any reason God would have her doing what she did? After the Old Testament, I guess I feel a little wary of anyone doing violent things in God's name. However, she maintained that this was something she was meant to do all the way to her death. I suppose there's no real way to know, but do you guys think that it's likely? And so I'll just give you a little bit of background on Joan of Arc in case it helps. She was born in the fourteen hundreds in a small village in France. She was a peasant girl with no military background.

France was in the middle of the Hundred Years' War against England, and much of Northern France was under English or Burgundian, which is an English ally control. As a teenager, she claims to begin experiencing what she described as divine visions and voices. She identified them as saints, specifically, Saint Michael, Saint Catherine, and Saint Margaret, or Marge, like she prefers. These voices told her to support Charles the seventh.

So Lord said someone says, support Chuck, the uncrowned king of France, and help drive out the English so he could be crowned. At age 17, after persistent appeals, she convinced local leaders and eventually Charles the seventh's court that she was sent by God. Given armor, a banner, and a small force, she joined the French army. In 1429, she led troops to lift this the siege of Orleans, a major turning point in the war. Her presence inspired morale and unity among the French. Following the victory, she pushed for Charles to travel through hostile territory

for his coronation, and he was crowned king of France with Joan at his side. In 1430, during a skirmish skirmish, she was captured by the Burgundians, sold to the English, and put on trial for charges including heresy, witchcraft, and cross dressing because she wore men's armor. Mhmm. The trial was politically aiming to discredit Charles the seventh by labeling Joan a fraud.

In 1431 at age 19, she was convicted and burned at the stake. Witness said she died calling on Jesus' name, and many were moved by her bravery. And in 1456, about twenty five years later, a posthumous retrial ordered by the pope cleared her of all charges and declared her a martyr. She became a symbol of French unity and faith and was canonized as a saint by the Catholic church in 1920.

Wait. Joan of Arc is a saint? Yes. So she's in heaven. Yeah. Saint Joan. I mean, I could have deduced that, but thank you. Well, you wouldn't have known about Saint Marge. Yeah. So should it? Patron's Tandem. Tupperware. So so there's a there's a few different questions in there. So, like, she's got interactions with saints, and I'd be like, I don't Yeah. Nope. I don't know. I mean, although, like, when you're seeing the word angel in Scripture, like, you're talking about messengers from Yahweh. It's not the seraphim. It's not the cherubim. Like,

messengers, God is sending messages back and forth or, like, from heaven or from the heavenly realms to here. And so is it off the table that he uses some messenger to send things to people? No. No. Not really. Whether it sees specific people, I don't know. Can't speak to that. So the the question then is, one could could someone have given her message about this particular type of thing. Hey. I want you to support Charles the seventh, and you should take up arms

in the fight for that. How do we think about that kind of that kind of a situation? If here's what I can tell you. If someone would claim in the modern day that the lord came to them and said, I need you to support this political party or this particular political figure, I would say, man, I don't know about that. I would find very large pause in that because what it appears to be is that god is,

like like his kingdom is surrounded in a particular political organization or government. Right? And, like, I don't I don't know. I I would have a hard time taking that in. Now it was tricky, though. And when you say this kind of thing out loud, 38 Trump supporters magically appear. But, like, god puts god sets the authorities in place. Right. Yeah. It says. Yeah. I mean, that is that's not like it's it's true. Right? He also allows all authorities to be in place. Right? So whether miser. Whether he took a positive That's right. Right. A positive action, like and and moved it or, like, it was a a free choice,

sinful action, or whatever. Yep. God still allowed it. So, like Yeah. Totally. That all still gets to be yeah. All all else gets to be under his power, which I agree. Yep. But I all I can speak to is my opinion, and I feel like I would have a hard time because unless who was a king who? Charles the seventh. Yeah. I mean, was he a loud proclaimer of the gospel of Jesus Christ? I don't know. No. But if he would have been the head of France, he was supposed to be the head of the not Anglican church, actually English. The well, I didn't even know what that church at that point in time is that, like, stole the avenue on papacy at that a couple hundred years later. But, like, the king of France and the king of England are the head of the church of their respective countries. Yeah. Like, that is it they're they're meant to swear,

fealty based off of them being one that brings the word of god to their people, stuff like that. Like, that was majority of But the individual person doesn't matter here as much as the as the role and responsibility. Right? So, like, if one king dies, another king shows up. Now he's the king. Right. Yeah. And then just swears that they are the one to protect the the the church and its interests in that country and then as it stands in the world. Yeah. I don't know, Dan. What do you think? There's just so many layers to this. I'm I'm kinda filtering through, like, okay. You go through the book of judges, and god uses people to do military things, you know, and very broken people. You you know, Samson, he's just like, the guy was a mess. But he also gave him some violent assignments. You know, Gideon. I mean I mean, like, they did all all of them. Right? Yep. Every judge. So I I would have a hard time saying that that that God, you know, raised up Joan of Arc. At the same time, I'd have a hard time saying, maybe.

Yeah. Because he rose up a raised up a Samson, know, who was a womanizer, and and killed a lot of people. And I mean, wouldn't you hold those Old Testament stories in a slightly different light as as,

you know, Israel was God's set apart example people. Right? And by the time It's a different Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I I don't know if that turns my head either way on on, you know, right or wrong, but, like, I don't know. Like like, even the judges as an example feel slightly different because god's like, you are my people, and I will be making example out of you. Yeah. I'm just having trouble post Jesus. Yeah. Like And I think that was what the question was kinda getting at. And, like That's my that's my struggle is because, like, I have I have plenty of biblical precedents for that happening pre Jesus. Uh-huh. Like, absolutely. God works in in military powers just as often as he works in, hey. I'm sending a donkey that can speak. Like, this it's it's it's his laws of the universe, whatever he wants to do. He's gonna make it happen in whatever he what he wants to. Is God capable of doing this? Absolutely. Yeah. Is it outside of his purview of what he's done before? No. Not outside of his identity. It certainly just doesn't full it doesn't sit, on any level of what I've seen played out in scripture post Jesus. Yeah. And I and I but I I don't have any personal experience with god coming to me and going, hey. Back this political figure or do this kind of thing. It's just like Yeah. Hate in my scripture. Like, listen to me. Have a relationship with me and walk where I tell you to walk and trust me.

And and and, like, in in in the New Testament, you have an example of of, you know, Jesus saying, woah, Peter, you know, slow down. Pick up taking the sword. Put it away. I mean, put this guy's ears back on. Yeah. Yeah. But, of course, he had a purpose to get to the cross. Right. Exactly. You know, that hasn't even totally you know, it doesn't mean you always put your sword away. But there's no, you know, Paul saying, hey. We gotta take out Greece. You know? Yeah. I

mean Right. There's a lot of pagans out here. You you know? Yeah. So yeah. There's no quite the opposite. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. You don't you just don't see that. Paul's like, no. That's that's the new family. I suppose what's interesting though Israel. Is that, like but then then again, our New Testament record covers a very short amount of time. Agree. Yes. Right. Right? You're you're talking

Forty years? Well, could you could be if you if you depends where you date revelation, but you're talking either late sixties or as far as up to, like, late seventies or early eighties. Sure. Yeah. Right. And but still Fifty. Even post Jesus, you're talking sixty years Yeah. Worth of history. And, like, think about your, the New Testament authors, like the, like, the epistle folks, like, they're just not talking about Paul's talking about, like, he's going to talk to leaders, but it doesn't have anything to do with their political situation. But

it's probably is actually too small of a sample to say, how does God continue to interact with history? Yeah. If if the otherwise if to your point, if God does what he wants, it's not it's not outside of his realm to otherwise continue to be part of earthly mechanisms. Like, why would I take this out of his hands to have not done? Even though there's parts of this, which I think to Mike's point, are stream caution

because, like, the the the validity here's I think the thing that hits me is that, like, affirming this as a likely pattern from Yahweh runs a risk of what feels like opening the door for every other yahoo Exactly. Who would then use the pattern to go, but the the lord sent me to do this thing or that thing on behalf of the government. And, like, it's such a and people do that anyway. Yeah. I was gonna say, we have a wide sampling of people that would do that kind of thing that I just flat out would not trust. Yeah. Hey. I'm in jail. Come break me out, Paul did not say. Yeah. Yeah. I mean Yeah. If god wants to, those bars are gonna break, friend. Right? So interesting. Like, I I don't yeah. I think we can't of course, the the the writer was right. Answerable question. Right. We can't know for Right. I think the caution is warranted,

but it's also it's been certainly not right outside of the realm of possibility that, god has Yeah. Interacted with society in this way. No. And that's totally fair. I mean, I I think if if we look at the the the widespread of what the New Testament is in a very small amount of years at most, I don't believe that god stopped working within humanity over the last two thousand years. Like, I know he was president and did plenty of stuff. Yeah. And so it's not that crazy to think the It would just be a it would be a unique time where your national, ideas and ideals line up specifically with something that Yahweh is trying to get done. Like, mostly because like, we look at Jesus as as a king,

and and he acts as a king as a sacrificial king. Mhmm. And so, like, it it it does it's just it it's worth the extra scrutiny to go, hey. It looks like my the thing that our nation wants to do or our government wants to do aligns perfectly with what God is trying to get get done right now, and that feels a way. Because, like, very generally, like, God's like, I want people to know me and be in relationship with me, and you will sacrifice so people know me. And and, like, very rarely does it feel like our national aspirations actually come alongside that and go,

yes. But I also want you to have this extra land because Sure. I get it. Yeah. And it's it's an odd thing to back because, like, from the perspective of of of trying to look at it and going, what what pattern am I potentially establishing here is an understanding of how god interacts with with governmental powers. Right? Like, the the Burundians and the Brits were were in French territory, and they didn't want them there any longer. The the the premise here is that Gond sent

Joan to back Henry the seventh Charles. Or Charles the seventh, excuse me, to eliminate, the Burgundians and the Brits on French territory and therefore beat them back to the British Isles. And so is it possible that God had a mechanism within that? Yes. I mean, I think that God's involved in the whole earth,

across the board. I I don't know if I'm gonna go, yeah, God definitely wants the Brits in the British Isles. In the British He wants the Burgundians to no longer have Orleans. And, like, I don't want I don't want, you know you know, I want France to stay France and all this different stuff. I just it's it's an interesting thing to try and go, ah, for sure, I believe that's a thing. I do wonder I wonder how, like, Christian

pacifists, like, historically have thought about, like, that story Yeah. Specifically. Yeah. Like

yeah. Anyway, curious. Curious indeed. That's a curious question. Curious, Mike. What do you think? Alright. I don't think anything. Yeah. Mike's not thinking about it. Alright. Moovie, you had a you had to ask Esther. Mandrakes. Hit me. Genesis 30. K. So in Genesis 30 verse 14, you get in the days of wheat harvest, Reuben went and found mandrakes in the field and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, please give me some of your son's mandrakes.

Verse 15, but she said to her, is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son's mandrakes also? Rachel said, then he may lie with you tonight in exchange for your son's mandrakes. When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, you must come into me for I have hired you with my son's mandrakes. So he lay with her that night. And god listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son.

So there's plenty of stuff going on between Leah and Rachel here. There's there's a lot more background into why there's, you know, anger on on the part of Leah and the part of of Rachel, Jacob doing some stuff, Laban screwing some stuff up that Jacob even has the two wives. Lots of stories about who's giving birth to who and what the circumstances are, and that's why their name is, what it is. But then there's just this random piece where Ruben is bringing in some freaking mandrakes,

and then they're like, you stole my hubby. Would you steal my son's mandrakes also? Seems like a very weird thing to call out specifically, and like I tried to find some cultural stuff into this. My one book failed me entirely and was like, yeah, they're flood they're mandrakes. Yeah. Good to know. Another is She really likes mandrakes. She she really enjoys mandrakes. There was one that, like, maybe there were special healing properties to mandrakes that that maybe we're missing out on culturally. And then a third was, like, also known as love apples,

and there's, like, an aphrodisiac thing that's going on here, that it's like, hey. She wanted another child, and, the aphrodisiac is meant to potentially boost the possibility of getting another baby because more babies equals more legitimacy to Jacob's heart. Jacob's getting old and tired. Yeah. And, like because I'm not in the mood. Yeah. Right. Here. Have a love Here. Have some love apples, I

got some of Reuben's mandrakes. Are you interested? That just feels like a creepy situation in any state that it's in. Yeah. Right. And so I just I was very confused by this, and I was wondering like, I tried to look into the Hebrew, and I got a little bit lost trying to find if there was just something I was flat out missing here. And I was just interested to hear, one, if you guys have ever really, like, taken pause at this moment going, what the heck is happening with these mandrakes? Or two, if there's just something I'm missing that, like, through, commentaries you've read or studies you've done or things that you've, you know, looked into it that I it's an obvious thing that I'm just missing. I would like to take a quick pause.

Are mandrakes a fruit nowadays? Can you have one? Are mandrakes a fruit? I thought they were a flower. Oh. Oh. Or a root maybe. Excuse me. Not a flower. I've understood it as a fruit. Was Yeah. Converse Mandrakes are a fruit? You ever had a mandrake? No. I'm looking it up. Okay. Got it. Don't look up love apple, friend. All I'm getting is Harry Potter. Yes. Yeah. Yeah.

Madam madam someone's mandrake roots, it's in chamber of secrets. They're they're screaming mandrakes. Okay. Pastor Phyllis? Yeah. I'm just I I've never heard of it as a fruit. I thought it was a root or a flower.

Fruit root. Ben, you are you are squinting so hard at that computer screen. I'm so excited you're I'm reading. I figured.

So so so they're sharing the dude already. Yes. Right. Yes. Exactly. They're sharing the dude already. They've both had sons to hit for of his already. Like, I believe. I don't think this is Leah's first child Right. Of her. I think it's just she was closed up for a while,

and then Jacob started having kids with Leah or Rachel. Rachel. Yep. And then now is back with Leah having more kids. I mean, ends up with 12 sons. Yeah. But he's got quite a few. Yeah. So concubines too, I think, actually. So so the so one of the questions that then rises is, like, why do I even have this story? Why is this story like, what is the purpose of this story? Yeah. And it's just right in the middle of a random long Yeah. Story. Okay. Yeah. Sorry. Yeah. But they needed 12. Sure. Yeah. I mean,

we're I yes. Maybe they were slowing down. God's like, let's get the let's get the love apples going. We gotta do 12. Feels like, well, okay. Have your son breathe aphrodisiac fruit in here. Yeah. During the wheat harvest, bringing the mandrakes is gonna get Jacob riling up. I don't think the mandrakes matter. I I I think the point the point of the story is god's faithfulness. Right? Like, that's her reaction. Right. Her reaction is to say, look. God has blessed me. Yeah. Right. Is the car. Wombs open up. Yeah. And and Rachel's like, you get to Rachel had Dan. And, like, Dan goes off the deep end. Yeah. Doesn't doesn't even get to doesn't even get to be counted as a tribe in the book of revelation. Dan's off the board. Dan, that's bad. Yeah. That's bad. He started a megachurch. God's like, dang it. I can't deal with you, Dan. Yeah. An AI megachurch. So so so it's interesting the the interesting part, I think, like, the thing stands out is you're like, this guy's getting he's getting traded around like a dude of the night. Yeah. Like, I'll trade you, but, like, well, thanks for these mandrakes. You can sleep with him tonight,

which, like, I think I think it's a clear this is not right. This isn't, like the it is negative every time we see multiple relationship. Like Oh, yeah. Totally. Like, Jacob, not good dude. This turns out poor. Right? But I think the point is is, like, the mechanism through which god's faithfulness is otherwise extended through Leah Mhmm. Is the point of the story. Sure. I I don't whether there's a cultural relevance to the Mandrake, I'm not sure. I don't I don't think there is. Okay. I think it's it could have been anything, but the point was is that, like, the the the mechanism through which god's blessings are revealed. Like, what otherwise brings this guy, like like, him back over to Leah when he's obvious not only does he favor Rachel, but her sir Bilhah. Right? Like, this guy's been getting around Yeah. Right. Yes. Yeah. This is four ladies. Right. And so at some point, like, they just they just wanted off spring.

And so she's willing and now she's willing to treat his provision of offspring for trading of something as basic as a mandarin. Interesting. These are these readily available. She could go pick her own. And she thought, like That's That's what I was trying to figure out. I'm like, it doesn't seem like this is a high commodity thing. There's nothing I can find that culturally this is like, and the mandaric root was as sacred as gold. It's like, no. It's just during the wheat harvest, instead of wheat, Reuben brought in mandarics,

and then she's like, I'm gonna buy your husband for the night with just this antifertility thing. Like like, maybe maybe they made him ovulate or something. I don't know. Interesting. Well, except for the the the mandrakes went to Rachel. Yes. Right. Yeah. She was like, give me give me these mandrakes. Why would you take them for me? Is Rachel Dunn having kids at this point? No. No. No. She It goes back. Leah has a couple, and then ultimately, what was it? Joseph? Originally, Rachel was the one that was barren, and then the lord opens her womb. Yeah. But Leah was ugly.

But Leah was the older Jacob. No. Leah was Leah was older. Yes. Leah was the older one and was like Specifically ugly, though. He said Yeah. He said something about her eyes. Like, her eyes were dull. Here's the thing. When Jacob come back in from, I don't know, whatever thing he was supposed to be doing Jeopardy. And then this this this gal's like, I bought you with Mendrix. And he's like, I I water this. Right.

What a weird thing where he's like, I mean, alright. Yeah. But that was a deal. That's the that's what seems to me. He's like, fine. He wasn't like, how many? Can I can I right? He didn't offer to go pick an an amount of Mandrakes over the amount that could have bought back his own manhood. Like He's like, Why would he want to do that? He's like, literally, I'm worth any amount of mandrakes. It could be eights. It could be half of a one. I will be over later.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. How many mandrakes? Doesn't matter. I'm on my way. Yeah. It's a good it's an interesting scenario. I, I I think it's more so the path to otherwise reveal god's faithfulness than anything else. So the so the writer of of this particular portion of this is is really is using this as a device, truthful. I think it really happened. Yeah. Really happened. But, calling upon specifically attention to it as a way to show that this is this is through all human weirdness and and and brokenness. Like, god is still faithful with this, still going to do what he said he was going to do with Abraham and earlier on with with, you know, Noah and Adam. Yeah. We know what's interesting, actually, is that the key focus of this section has nothing to do with Jacob.

Yeah. Right? It's god blessing the ladies. Oh, totally. Jacob is like He's he's not a man. Jacob's Jacob's a servant to Laban and then gets the ladies, and then it is these ladies are seeing the faithfulness of Yahweh through these scenarios and even naming their children because of Yahweh's faithfulness and, like, the circumstances that god smiled upon them, god heard them, all this different stuff. Yeah. It doesn't say god rewarded Jacob. It's No. God god remembered Leah. God remembered Rachel. He's he's

I think actually is emphasized by the fact that he's traded around. Like Yeah. Oh, totally. Yes. Right. The scheming that he did in his younger days is being absolutely done against him with his ladies and with Laban. Yeah. Yeah. And God is just using him. He like, from Andrakes. So I actually I think it emphasize it puts a highlighter to his he's just a he's just a means to otherwise God to provide blessing to these ladies. And the mandrakes kind of emphasize that. This is not off as, hey. I'm gonna go generate more family.

This is god doing. I will It's not like, hey. You're such a good looking man, or, hey. You're so strong and amazing. It's like, hey. I need you for this. Yeah. I traded mandrakes for it. Yeah. Interesting. Come hither. Okay. The other flip part of that, just later on in the chapter, you get when when Jacob is is planning to leave Laban, and and start figuring out when he can go and and what he takes from Laban, as as a blessing.

Laban tries to kinda pull a one once over on him a little bit with, like, what sheep he's willing to give him, and what he can take, and god just kinda changes that. And it's just like, I actually just blessed that anyway even though you were looking for, you know, giving him the speckled ones. But then Jacob has this weird situation where, he said, what should so he's in excuse me. Verse 31, he said, what shall I give you? Jacob said, you should not give me anything. If you will do this for me, I will again pass to your flock and keep it. Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from it every speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb and the spotted and speckled among goats and they shall be my wages, and then it goes later on and it goes but the day that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and spotted and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted everyone that had white on it and every lamb that was black and put them in the charge of his sons. He set a distance of three days journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob pastured the rest of Laban's flock. Then Jacob took fresh sticks of poplar and almond and plain trees and peeled white streaks in them exposing the white of the sticks. He set the sticks that he had peeled in front of the flocks in the troughs, that is the watering places,

where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred when they came to drink, the flocks bred in front of the sticks, and so the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. What? Yeah. So Jacob Weren't they speckled and spotted in the first place? That makes very good sense. No. The speckled and spottomed ones were taken from the flock, and sent to Laban's sons. So, like, now Jacob is dealing with no speckled and spock once. And that's what he's trying to get. And so in order to get more of those, he schemes

and places poplar and plain sticks that he's peeled the whites. I don't know. Sure. And puts them in front of the trough where they're drinking and then presumably they're mating at these troughs and because they're near the poplar sticks, they they are now potentially coming out spotted or speckled. I'm wondering is this like a genetic situation that I'm not understanding how this works? Yeah. Or is there something about, like, they mate nearby and then somehow get some speckles and spots on them because of these sticks? Are these sticks? Purely cosmetic? Are they metaphor, though? Like, they are not speckled sticks until he tears them back and reveals the white,

and, like, it's now it's a metaphor of the sticks to the sheeps? I don't know about that. I don't either. That's why I said it's a symbolic symbolic prayer thing. Like, in a twenty four seven prayer room, it's like, hey. We're doing like, I put a couple blonde hair, blue eyed dolls by our kitchen sink, and then we had two blonde hair girls. I it

okay. Alright. But wait. Did you do that, Dan? No. I didn't. That's creepy. I was really hoping that that wasn't true. Because it's really terrifying. Drink of water. We better get busy. Right. I got some mandrakes. I bought you for three mandrakes, baby. It okay. So it seems it seems odd to me that there's not a a a nod to, like, and because Jacob did this, Yahweh blessed it. Yeah. And, like, made that Because if it was if it was the thing that, that I suggested, that's not off the table. But usually when they do when he does this through prophets, he's like, hey. You're gonna sit in your own filth for a while, and you're gonna run around naked, and it's gonna symbolize

how messed up Israel is. And that's what I'm going to do. Well, because it's just interesting because, like, there's no lack of communication between Yahweh and Jacob in this situation. Well, in in his life. There's no lack of communication with, like, what Yahweh is doing. There's plenty of portions of of of twenty nine and thirty and thirty one where Yahweh is doing something. Yahweh speaks to Laban and says, you shall not speak a word against Jacob, when Jacob flees, with Rachel and Leon all the kids, leaving Laban behind to not be able to bless them and it was all chastity, whatever. But, like, it's just it's it's odd to me that in this space,

there's no statement of and Yahweh commanded Jacob to do this. Or and because Jacob did this in the sight of the Lord, he Yahweh blessed him in this way and therefore created this. There's a prosperity that is constantly happening for Jacob despite his his, like, lack of reverence and faith to Yahweh. Like, he even refers to, to Yahweh as the fear of Isaac later on to Laban in '31. Like, there's no reverence here. Like, he he said a little bit of a thing at, at Beth not Bethsheba, maybe. No. Beersheba? No. Anyway, there was this place that he blessed with an altar

to the lord, and it's where Jacob's ladder, that's where we get that story from, where he rested his head. He makes a monument there. But it's not even a real, like, it's not even a real, like, I'm blessing this place because god is doing this thing. It's like conditionally, conditionally, if god does this thing, then I will consider this place blessed. Mhmm. I only say that to say that, like, it just seems like it's a weird spot to not have something that's that's called upon as in Yahweh commanded him to do it, or because he did this, Yahweh blessed him in this way. Yeah. So so I think Or maybe I just don't need that deliberate thing there, but it's still implied. Yeah. And I think we talked about this recently in a different context, but, like, a lot of time, especially in the old testament, it it does not provide commentary.

Agreed. Yes. Right. Right. Like, it's implied. There's an implication there, and, like, it tends to be on the opposite side where, like, someone misbehaves, and you're like, why didn't it say they misbehave? Why doesn't the bible just go, and God was mad because they misbehave? Right. But it doesn't do that. It just lets people misbehave and expect you to know that. Yep. Right. And so I I think what's happening here is that, like, think about, think about in the same vein as some of the miracles that we have we see Jesus doing, which is like, how can people otherwise recognize the hand of Yahweh unless he participates physically into the world in some way or another? Yeah. Right? And so, like, are they magic sticks? No. Like, did he did he figure out how to, like, breed sheep in such a way that no one has figured out No. He did not. I think Dan like, Dan's wording is pretty good where you where you go, like, it's a prayer of sorts. Like, Yahweh says he's gonna bless Jacob. How do we know that? The dude put sticks down. Anybody else could have put sticks down. It would not have worked. Oh, totally. Yes. Right. So, like, it's not because he's magic. It's because Yahweh is with him, and it's evidenced by the sticks aren't didn't do actually anything. Yahweh did it, but you know that Yahweh did it because we know that the sticks are magic. Like you're saying, watch this. I guess the only Put these sticks down. The only point of contention I have with that, though, is because, like, the next chapter we get a, and Yahweh did this specific thing, and that's the way that he blessed Jacob. So what he says, go back to the land of your ancestors and to your family.

What I'm what I mean is, is, what he did with Laban. Like, he specifically charges Laban to not go against Jacob. Oh, sure. Sure. And so And so same god, and I recognize that it can be talked about in two different ways. It just seems like an interesting thing to me like, if that's what I'm supposed to pull out potentially, right, is that, like, of Yahweh's blessing Jacob all over the place, even, like, nobody else would have put the speckled sticks out, and it would have actually helped him Yes. Get a level of of riches to be able to believe and be blessed to go back to his his father's homeland. Right? But, like but then the next one is, ah, but god did specifically do this thing for Jacob and then this thing for Jacob. It just seems like an odd thing to let go. I'm supposed to pull. I'm I'm supposed to not need that context here. Well Yeah. But, like but but, actually, I think this it does do that, though. Like, the beginning of chapter 31 goes back and explains where he says,

when he's talking to Jacob to to Rachel and Leah, he says, you know that all, this is in verse, six. You know that with all my strength, have served your father, and he has not he has cheated me and changed my wages 10 times. If he said the spotted sheep will be your wages and all the sheep were born spotted, if he said the street sheep will be your wages and all the sheep were born streaked. And so, like Right. So basically, he's making the case that, like, Yahweh has been has done this for us Uh-huh. Even though your father tried to take advantage of me. Agreed. And so it it, like, it it's looking back and saying, like and this is this is the way in which it has been done. Sure. Because what is definitely not true is poplar sticks don't do that. Well, yeah. And I guess that's it it just seems like an odd situation that it even happened or needed to be called out then. Like, seems as hundreds of years later looking back saying, look how cool god is. Well, yeah. But Look look look at how story that led up to to this. Just like with the mandrakes. Right? Like, it's it's a it's a mechanism within the story to show god's faithfulness. Right? But then with this, we're saying, well, yeah, Jacob may have done a weird thing as a potential prayer that wasn't really him saying I'm putting out a prayer, but then is willing to call it a blessing from Yahweh in the next chapter or in the next statement he makes to Lee and Rachel. I'm just saying why are there sticks involved at all. Right? It just seems not to be done for the for the the writer to to bring attention to it. I mean, so Jesus could've healed anybody without touching them. He could have healed the guy with the blind guy without putting mud on his face. Right? So, like, there's a physical there's a how else can we understand God acting unless we see something physically that's happening in front of us? And so, right, it's a way I I often think of those things as blessings to the world around us so that, like, you have a way to tangibly connect actions of Yahweh with the world around you. Or otherwise, like, someone could wake up seeing, and you could be like, well, God did it. And, like, that's probably true. Right. Yes. But, like, if somebody goes and prays for a man and put his hands on his face, and then they can see, then you're like, Like, you know what I'm saying? Like Right. There's a gift in the physical physical representation of a miracle that so that you can affirm this guy's not just making stuff up like Yahweh has acted here. And maybe part of that is a message to the other shepherds that are

tending to flock. They're like, well, we saw the sticks, and we see what's being born. Yeah. Sure. Yeah. Sure. Or even the walls Of Jericho. Right? Like, the horn blast was unnecessary. Right. Yelling did need to happen. Oh, yeah. Agreed. Yeah. Yeah. Would yeah. Right. It just seems I I I'm just interested I guess, I would be interested to look further into, how was this taught, like, fifteen hundred years ago? Like, what how were they talking about this kind of thing? Like, was there any exposition from any rabbis that said this is the thing? Not saying that the rabbi is the one who would give me the the context that I'm looking for that I should trust more than anyone else's. I'm just saying it's just an interesting thing to me that, like, if this was meant to be passed down the lines and generations of the Jews, they're meant to to grab a hold of this and then learn about their their creator, their Yahweh that is their personal god, through these retellings of these situations, how they knew these stories of their patriarchs and stuff like that. I'm just interested. I wonder if they take that and go, well, yeah. Of course. Jacob was doing a physical thing. And even though God didn't command him to do it, God did bless him through it. And

this is how it worked. Yeah. So I think two things. Like so most Jews would not actually think of as a personal god. Their general relationship is Yahweh is the god of Israel. They are part of Israel. They, like, they didn't they didn't think personal relationship as much as modern Christianity does also to, I think, our detriment. But second And how do you explain the Psalms? Like, there's so many Psalms that are like, I I lift my eyes up to the hills and see my father. Oh, sure. Yes. But they but, they did not,

and and, actually, I would I would make the case that the New Testament churches also didn't think of this. They did not think of, like, although god interacts in individual lives, his relationship was with a saved or chosen community, not just them specifically. And so it caused them to react. So, like, think of, think of the Lord's Prayer. It doesn't say give me this day our daily bread. Like, they talked communally. Right. And that that's how they thought about it. And so, like but what I was gonna say is this is the second part is, like, both of the things you brought up are telling the same thing. Like, it's about Yahweh's faithfulness. Mhmm. It's less about the individual circumstances at which they're participating in. Mhmm. Like, it's not an indication of, like, you should do mandrakes instead. Right. No. And I I I and I wouldn't try and pull that scripture and go, hey. Now as I'm teaching this today,

make certain that if you're trying to do a thing, you should do a physical thing to affect Yahweh's changing it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right. No. And I wouldn't extrapolate that from it. But okay. Okay. Interesting. You're listening to life from the path. Thanks for hanging out, Mike. We got some advice? Yeah. We do. Ready? Okay. Yep. Okay. Dear life from the path. Hey. Did you put those glasses back on? Yeah. Can't see. Okay. Why? Do I my hat look better? Yeah. I don't it did it it don't look right. What if I pull it down further? It never looked right. Alright. That's fair. Dear, life from the Pant. I recently reconnected with a woman I dated briefly in the nineteen eighties and haven't seen since.

She's around my age. We both were married one year apart, had daughters one year apart, and got divorced after twenty year marriages. She spotted me on the social medias and suggested I call her to catch up on things, which I did. This led to an invitation to meet her for a bite to eat and more talk, which I gladly accepted. We lived two hours apart, and I drove to her home to meet her. We had a great day and evening. And as I was leaving, I gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek, whereupon she planted one on me. I wasn't expecting it, but it was awesome. I felt like a school kid with a crush. I had forgotten that feelings like this were even possible. We have spent every weekend together since that meeting last month. I have a special place in my heart for her even from from so long ago. My problem is I said the l word way too soon. I needed to rectify my misstep and explained it was intended to represent caring and affection as opposed to being romantically, quotes, in love with her, which for me is an ongoing more protracted process.

I told her I have no expectation of her reciprocating, and I just wanted her to know that I care for her and always have. I know some women and maybe men shudder at hearing these words too soon in a relationship. She may be one of them. Anything else I can do to lessen her trepidation as we progress? Is there any recommended time frame for appropriately professing one's romantic love? I mean Somebody help this man. This guy's a real square, dude. Yeah. She didn't even he didn't even include in any details where it said she was upset or, like, she's had a real problem with this. He just got embarrassed. I mean, how soon? He didn't actually say.

It doesn't feel like it happened that weekend? Yeah. Like, he he went in for a plant on the cheek, and she hit him on the lips, and he's like, I love you. But there were several weekends later, I thought. I mean, they they spent a lot of weekends together. And then he's like, oh, I said I love you. I mean, okay. What are they? In their fifties now? It's it's a different time clock than when you were 20 Yeah. Or 15 or whatever whenever they were together. Yeah. You you it shouldn't take you two years to figure out, oh, I think I love you. I mean Yeah.

Not three times on the pipe. He he he's just acting like he's still in high school. He feels that way, Dan. He's reinvigorated with butterflies. Yeah. I love you. Dan, I don't

He's eating I appreciate you were like, the timeline's different. You're dying. Say I love you quicker. I got three weeks left. I got three weeks left. Do you love me? I love you, Marge. So so wait. Like, what's his what's his question? Do you have any advice for, like, how I can abate any trepidation she has on her end? That'll make it worse. Yeah. There's nothing you can do to do it better. What else can I say and shove my foot back in my mouth on by saying, well, well, what I meant was love and affection

like a like a like a child would say it, like a teenager, not like a real deep It's like a true love? You know what you should do? You should go look at the Greek words that we have that mean love and just really, like, hammer on eros, and, like, that's what I meant. Yeah. I meant I have a physical affection love for you. Yeah. Ain't nothing brotherly love happening here. No Adelphia or whatever it is. And then Yeah. Connor, rescue this man. Not a god. Tell him how to behave. What should he do? As the resident marriage expert. Yep. I've been married two months now. Yep. That was a joke. How long into dating your prospective wife did you say I love you? Oh, let's see here. She told me about a

month in. I told her about a month and a half in. Oh. Oh. That's a two weeks. You played it the other way. Right. That was a long two weeks for her. Did she say, I didn't mean it. You were at two weeks. She was at four. You were at six? I was like, I'm not sure how this is going in. We talk about this. We broke up. It was funny. Now it's all worked out. But how how do you fix this, man?

Cats out the bag. Ride the wave. You know what? Go all in. If she's not in it, well, whatever. Yeah. Wow. Is the major truth, like, if you meant it Yeah. Then what's the harm here? Right. If it's true, what's why are trying to hide it? Like, hiding it. Yeah. Stop playing political games. You said the thing. You meant the thing. Let's let's shake out the dice and see what happens. Yeah. That's what I'm saying. He's terrified that his real emotions are gonna push away this lady, and therefore, he would like to change those emotions so that he can keep the lady in the throne room to look at that. Just tell her I meant olive juice. I like I like the Greek salad. I like olive juice. Yeah. Or all the Jews. Would What is and here's the level of the things that are embarrassing. One, that Dan told that joke. Two, that Boob and Connor both laughed at it. Make it Three, when Ben tried to, I don't know, say something about I mean, she was not here on that. Mike, you have no right to call anyone out for any decision they've made in the last hour. To say Jews on the air. Don't bring up the air. Don't know why you guys are acting the way you're acting. It's beautiful. You look like a kid trying to be a cowboy. You reckon? Is that a catchphrase? Yeah. I'm a try it out. Alright. I'm a say you reckon all the time. Let's get oh, here we go. Let me get some advice from Secular. Ready? Okay. Secular says, I wish you had mentioned how this woman reacted when the word love escaped your lips. Yeah. Did she smile, cringe, remain silent? There is no timetable for expressing love. Mean There's a

little bit of a timetable. You shouldn't wait two weeks. I'm I'm pretty confident. If one of you does it in four weeks, the other one should wait six. That's the regular And I might have waited about half an hour. Killed me. Did said so in in the Deuteronomy, four to six weeks ago. Wait. Wait. Wait. Dan, your wife said it first? Well, I said it first. Oh, and then she she She's about half an hour later. She goes, yeah. But you said earlier, I feel the same. But the whole half hour, I'm going Right? Oh. Didn't go well. Yeah. Never Did you wait. Did you say it, like, passively, or, like, was it very, like, direct? Like, you thought you were making a move. I had her pinned against a garage down under

Woah. It was the I put a big smooch on her face, and I said, I love you, baby. I didn't say baby. I just say I love you. And she was like, in Greece? What what is this? Iowa Christian College. It was a great holy place. Oh, boy. Kinda like Greece. She'd known her he'd known her for about four hours. Yeah. The bottom fire You're probably three weeks. You're probably dating her two or three weeks. I love that. Maybe I'll probably more than that. Maybe a month. I don't know. Okay. Hey. It worked out. I mean, it did. Yeah. It's four to forty years on Sunday. Amen. That's incredible. Oh, boy. Hold on. Singular continues. Yep. There is no timetable for expressing love. Oh. The time to use the word is when one feels it. Oh. Sometimes the feeling lasts. Sometimes it doesn't. From now on, take your cues from her. If what you said made her uncomfortable, you would already know. Let your relationship progress at its own rate and resist resist the urge to force it. I don't know if he would already know. This guy doesn't seem like he reads cues well. Yeah. He's a 50 year old high schooler. Yeah. Fact. Yeah. There's nothing a woman appreciates more than instead of talking to her about that specific thing, you asked a bunch of other people Right. And said, what do you think she'll say? Yeah. This guy's emotional outlet seems to be to ask the world. I don't think that's right. He's a daft punk.

Jeez. Ready? Take it. Nope. Hold on. Daft punk. Spammy. Dear, life from the past.

I made a terrible mistake moving 2,000 miles across the country to be closer to my grandchildren. Sounds awful. It's too freaking wild to hear. I am so glad that's where that went because I was thinking it was gonna be a relationship, but it's pretty freaking say I love them? Yeah. I told my grandchild I love them recently. They did not reciprocate. In the past, I have always noticed my son and daughter-in-law treated the other grandparents better. Oh, no. They roll out the red carpet for my daughter in law's parents. They arrange outings with them, take photos, and post the special grandchild grandparent moments on Facebook.

No one takes photos of me doing the same thing with the grandchildren. It is also hard to do things with them because my daughter-in-law is always rushing them to do something else. It's like she wants her parents to be the only ones who have special relationship with the grandkids. I feel sick to my stomach every day. In the past, I couldn't take off work to travel for visits like the other grandparents, so I missed out on a lot. I thought by moving here, I would stop feeling like an outsider with my grandchildren. I am single and still working, and although this was a major disruption to my life, it was a sacrifice I thought was worth making for the joy of being a more involved grandparent, but not much has changed. What do you think?

Why are you surprised? You're the 2,000 mile away doesn't see them very often grandparent. Yeah. And, like, you're expecting to have made the move, and then immediately they're like, you know what? We have a great relationship that we want to have you around at all times, and you are just as much in our lives as the people who are most likely around. Yeah. It just seems like an odd thing. And it sounds like you made this decision in the fantasy that you are going to finally have the relationship with your grandchildren that you wished you had that you saw in the other grandparents.

And now because they're standoffish, you're going, well, this is a wash. It's not worth the trip anymore or anything like that. Yeah. It sounds like that's the relationship you have with the grandkids. I'm not surprised. Did we get a sense for how long it's been? I didn't think so. No. Yeah. Okay. It seemed relatively soon. Yeah. Yeah.

I I don't think it was like I moved here three years ago, and it's still bad. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Patience is all she needs. Right. It'll work. It'll come out. I mean Maybe. Unless they're, like, 16. There's a good chance you're not salvaging that relationship. Good point. Like, I I'm blatantly honest about this. I'm picturing five year olds. Right. Yeah. Yeah. A five year old, they'll get there. Yeah. Like, if if they're 16, 17, and you're just showing up and being like, now Grammy's here. Yeah. I'd like to have friendship with you. No. That's the thing. It's like the whole thing seems a little bit me, me, me, Me. Exactly. Yes. Like, am single. I am still working. This was a major disruption to my life. Yeah. It was a sacrifice I thought was worth making for the joy of being a more involved grandparent. None of that was,

like, I'm so excited that I will get to see my grandchildren. I'm not excited. Thought it would bring more joy to me. Right. Exactly. I'm not excited to give them more joy by being more present. I'm excite I decided to feel more joy because this, it looks more like Instagram post of the other grandparents. Yes. And now that it doesn't look like that, no. Yeah. Yeah. And, like I'm moving back to Connecticut. I mean, and in general, like, I I mean, I I can't speak for every situation, but unless your wife's family is a complete circus, like, you tend to just spend some more time with the wife's family. It just tends to be that way. And so, like, it's generally a dude thing that, like, I I I wouldn't say it's prescriptive. Like, you should do it that way, but, like, judging on all the people I know, as long as that fat side of the family is not a not a complete orangutan, it's just it's pretty regular that, like, you gravitate towards the wife's family, like, once you start having kids, stuff like that. So alright. Let's see. Secular says, oh, the question was, not much has changed. What do you think? Secular says, that queasy feeling you described may be anxiety. This is something you should discuss with your son.

Before I render any judgments, it would have been helpful to know if you discussed your, quote, possible move to Tennessee with him and his wife to see how they felt about it. That's true. Wouldn't be funny Mhmm. If Graham Graham just showed up to Tennessee, and then she's like, I'm here. Right. And then everyone's supposed to be back. I'm ready to be super involved after work. Yeah. But I can work you in. I'm going on a singles cruise, but once I get back I don't know why my husband left. Right. Are you are are you you logged in to your Instagram? He's dead.

Whoops. That's fired hot. Okay. Then it continues. Or did you simply announce you were coming? If they welcome the idea but haven't included you, then shame on them. Family counseling might help smooth things out if they are willing. If they aren't and you aren't able to forge the kind of relationship you want with your grandchildren, consider making another move, somewhere where you are wanted and not so isolated. Now how awkward is that? We're gonna have family counseling with grandma because we're not sure if we like her. Imagine come and sit down and talk about it. It's like, why am I here? This is a this is a bad idea. Oh, lord. Alright. Hey. You're listening to live from The Thanks for hanging out with us this evening. We very much do appreciate it. If you got any feedback for us on the show, primarily complaints, that's what the line is for. (515) 517-0085. Call or text (515) 517-0085. That's the Bob Eisenhower live from the path complaint line. We'd love to hear from you. Connor Stone, thank you so much for coming in, brother. We really appreciate it.

And I think we're gonna turn you over into the night. I think I don't know. We might have a run where some folks are in town. So we might have a show next week, you reckon? Yeah. Alright. Doggone it. I got suckered in. Alright. Be hey. In the meantime, be faithful in the means. God will hand to the ends. You've been listening to Live From The Path.