Getting out of a funk: say the true thing out loud
Mike tells a hibachi-buffet story: annoyed at the crowd, a voice in his head said "you love all these people," and after repeating it in simple childlike terms his whole mood flipped — confirmed by a kid with a soup bowl joining him in the ice cream line. Boova adds his practice of recentering on identity ("I'm a son of God"). Together they argue the guilt signal is a run-to-God issue not a run-from-God issue, critique apathetic men who know the fixes (Bible, prayer, community) but do none of them, and land on: first reaction, talk to God; second, lean on your community.
More on Community
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Do accountability partners actually work?
- Do accountability partners actually do anything?
Mike raises his accountability-partners question: the standard dude-circle advice to get a buddy to hold you accountable for Bible reading, porn, church attendance, and drinking.
From No. 598 · Emphasis | Accountability, Worship and Praying with Strangers
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Dear LFTP 2: the neighbors' piling newspapers
- Dear LFTP: at what point can we pick up our out-of-town neighbors' piling newspapers and recycle them?
Mike reads the second letter: new neighbors have been out of town for weeks and their newspapers are piling up — at what point may the writer recycle them?
From No. 595 · Trust But Verify
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Local pastors, mutual refinement, and the 'pods' joke
- What word comes after "community"?
The best pastor for you is the person in your life who can look you in the eyeballs; walk into every room expecting the other person might refine you — that only works locally.
From No. 590 · Theodore Franco
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Dear LFTP: Martha, John, and Jerry
- How should a woman in love with her ex's brother tell friends, family, and his parents?
A host reads the first Dear LFTP letter: Martha dated John for two years, then he kept living with her six months after the breakup; John is an emotionally and verbally abusive alcoholic who burned every bridge.
From No. 584 · When Vanek Was Here | Cambodia Testimony, Church Mission, Josiah Queen