- What do non-Christians make of Christian phrases like 'love offering,' the '10:40 window,' 'washed in the blood,' and 'seeing the fruit'?
The hosts walk through a BuzzFeed community video in which non-Christian young people guess the meaning of four church phrases. 'Love offering' is read as something sexual; the '10:40 window' is guessed as the socializing window before church; 'washed in the blood' sounds contradictory since blood doesn't wash; 'seeing the fruit' is guessed as seeing someone's 'dirty bits.' A host then offers extra church idioms of his own ('ears to hear,' 'lift holy hands') that sound absurd to outsiders, and the group concludes that church culture is full of opaque vocabulary newcomers have no hope of decoding.
More on Evangelism
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Church, emotions, and the self-focus of affluence
- How do you help people in an affluent, self-focused culture see that they need Jesus?
Ben revives a question from two or three shows back: are church services and worship tunes postured toward certain personality types — predominantly emotions and dealing with emotions?
From No. 603 · Found Out
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Confetti and lasers: what should God's people be known for?
- Do we want to be known as the confetti and lasers people?
- What should God's people be known for?
Ben redirects to the docket's denomination question: when someone hears Silas's church described as 'the confetti and lasers people,' should that sting?
From No. 598 · Emphasis | Accountability, Worship and Praying with Strangers
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Dear LFTP: the $600 lawnmower and buying them a mower
- My nephew's wife took my $600, lied about it, and is avoiding me. Should I say something or let it go?
Mike reads a letter from someone who gave a nephew's wife $600 for a self-propelled lawnmower; she spent it, never bought the mower, and now avoids them.
From No. 587 · Coffee After Sunday
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Maintaining hope for people who won't choose Jesus
- How do you maintain hope for someone who keeps rejecting Jesus when God won't override their free will?
The episode's centerpiece: Mike's pre-show question about how to maintain hope for people who reject Christ when God won't override their free will.
From No. 579 · Wanted: Paul and Hope | Paul’s Persecution of Christians and Radical Redemption