- How does God see us — and do we see the people around us the same way?
Picking up the grace thread, a host tells a Red Lobster story: irritated at people crowding the door he was standing in front of, he realized he wasn't looking at them the way God does. The hosts share children's-Bible moments — one mangling the story of Jesus and the children ('He kicked them... sorry, I always mess that up'), a daughter fixated on the kid touching Jesus' beard in the illustrated Bible ('Jesus lets kids touch his beard'), and a three-year-old trying to command the rain with 'Be still' ('only Jesus can do it'). Then one host reads three verses on how God views people — 1 Peter 2:9 (chosen people, royal priesthood), Luke 12:24 (consider the ravens), Isaiah 43:4 (precious and honored) — and asks: if we are acceptable, valuable, and precious to God, do we treat the people around us the same way? The consensus: there's a gap, and remembering that Christ died for irritating people is a discipline.
More on Grace
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Should following Jesus feel more comfortable as time goes on?
- Should following Jesus feel more comfortable as time goes on?
A host asks whether following Jesus should feel more comfortable as time goes on — noting the low-level tension many feel around am-I-doing-enough and the stigma that contentment equals laziness.
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Dear LFTP: the friend group's new wife
- How do we tell the husband that they are not invited, and who should deliver the message?
A host reads a second Dear LFTP letter: ten college-friend couples are planning a once-in-a-lifetime cruise, and nobody wants the remarried friend's demanding new wife on the ship.
From No. 592 · Because I Got High
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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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Dear LFTP: the $900 couch letter
- My best friend and her son (about a thousand pounds combined) cracked my new $900 couch and want to bring more family over — what do I do?
Mike reads the second letter (same anchor/merge note): the writer bought a new house and a $900 couch; her best friend and the friend's son — 'about a thousand pounds' combined — audibly cracked it and now want to bring more family.