Slide from the path: 'Pope Buva' letter, 'you are not impressive,' and the Mark Driscoll scream bit
- A listener's lawn is full of people expecting wisdom from 'Pope Buva' - what should he tell them?
A 'slide from the path' letter addresses a host as 'Pope Buva,' expecting worldly wisdom from his lawn like crowds at the Vatican. In response, a host recounts a rough stretch - losing income to having nothing, needing to ask God's people for food - and his counsel: you are not impressive, by any means, and societal impressiveness does not matter; what matters is God's view of you as his child. The segment includes a comedic audio drop of Mark Driscoll shouting about cowardice ('You're not God. You're just a man'), which the hosts use to riff on how brutally honest 'you flat out suck' can sometimes be exactly the help someone needs.
More on Humility
-
The New Testament case for human shaping
- What does the New Testament actually say about spiritual authority and submission?
Ben walks the New Testament texts: Hebrews 13:17 ('obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls') presumes a soul-watching laborer, not a rule-maker;…
From No. 600 · Rage The Elephant
-
How to tell your voice from God's: the Bible test and leniency
- How can you tell the difference between you speaking and God speaking?
Ella distills the question: how do you tell the difference between you speaking and God speaking? Her first answer: we have a Bible — what God is telling you is probably already in it ('Ben's gonna have a proud papa moment').
From No. 597 · Maybe A Word From God
-
Evaluating the event: Elijah, Josiah, the sign of Jonah, the donuts test
- How do we tell whether a church element has become the thing itself rather than pointing to Jesus?
The hosts work through evaluation tools for curated experiences: Elijah didn't ask God to repeat the fire, and Jesus refused to repeat signs for the Pharisees ('you get the sign…
-
Dear LFTP: the untidy grandchildren's home
- How can I tell my son's family that visiting their untidy home increases my anxiety without offending them?
Mike reads a letter from a grandmother anxious about her son's untidy home; the hosts diagnose persnickety-vs-oblivious wiring (Ben's sock-on-the-floor example, Martha), advise…
From No. 589 · There Must Be A Reason