- 25 minutes 13 secondsMini: Imagining Home | "Eutychuses Everywhere"
288 | Think of Your Eternal Home
When you close your eyes and imagine eternity, does it feel a little fuzzy, blurry, or — dare we say — boring? Too many of us treat our final destination like a vague cloud-land instead of the vibrant home it’s actually designed to be. Inspired by a late-night question from Ryan’s daughter and a beautiful womb analogy, this mini-episode takes a sledgehammer to the misconceptions of the afterlife. We’re kicking open the door to Revelation 21 and 22 to look at the powerful “negatives” that reveal a beautiful positive. From the erasure of the chaotic sea and restrictive temples to the end of night, pain, and death, we explore how our eternal reality is filled with absolute access, deep relationships, and the ultimate joy of seeing Christ face-to-face. It’s time to stop settling for a blurry hope and start daydreaming about our true forever home!
The Big Idea: The Bible gives a clearer picture of the world to come than we might realize, letting us envision our future with happy hope.
This Week's Challenge: Take time to daydream about your “forever home” with the Lord.
Show Notes
19 June 2026, 12:57 am - 48 minutes 3 secondsPaul Upside-Down | "That Doesn't Make Any Sense"
287 | Live the Upside-Down Life
What does real strength look like in the kingdom of God? We live in a world obsessed with a scorecard of independence, power, polish, and visible success. But in this episode, we dive into 2 Corinthians to look at Paul’s completely inverted, upside-down life. From the shocking historical context of a Roman triumphal procession — where we discover we are actually the captured slaves walking behind the Conqueror — to the fragile reality of being a literal “shoebox” holding a priceless treasure, Paul flips our ideas of success completely on their head. We explore how to stop obsessing over “fixing the jar” and learn to embrace our thorns, our cracks, and our weaknesses so that Christ’s power can fill all things.
The Big Idea: Grace turns our lives upside-down by freeing us to embrace weakness, sacrifice, and self-giving so that Christ’s power and glory can shine through us.
This Week's Challenge: Identify a current weakness, physical limitation, or frustrating trial in your life, and explicitly hand it over to God in prayer — shifting your focus away from trying to make yourself look invincible and toward letting His grace be sufficient.
Show Notes
11 June 2026, 7:22 pm - 50 minutes 34 secondsBlueprint for Unity | "We Just Say Stuff"
286 | Build the Body
We’ve all been part of a nightmare group project — whether it’s pulling an all-nighter sleeping on a lab floor or surviving a high-stress church event that tests your marriage. But while human collaborations constantly break down, Ephesians 4 gives us a flawless, practical blueprint for spiritual unity. This week, we’re diving into Jesus’ high priestly prayer to see what a “Trinitarian union” actually looks like in everyday church life. We talk about the difference between creating unity and maintaining what the Spirit already built, how to tell a load-bearing truth from a personal opinion, and why church leaders are more like sports coaches equipping a team. Finally, we look at what it means to “truth in love” so you can stop behaving like a relational wrecking ball. Strip off the masks, pull up a chair, and let’s find out where our churches need to grow!
The Big Idea: Christ provides the guidance and gifts we need to maintain unity.
This Week's Challenge: Identify the specific grace and spiritual gift Christ has given you, and take one practical action to use it for the vulnerability, communication, or building up of your local congregation this week.
Show Notes
4 June 2026, 5:09 pm - 23 minutes 14 secondsMini: Grace’s Unlikely Community | "Receive Your Face"
285 | Reclassify Strangers Through Shared Grace
We naturally drift toward people who look, think, and vote like us because echo chambers are comfortable. But the gospel does not find a community that fits; it creates a family out of people who do not. In this mini-episode, we play the “Galatians 3:28 Sledgehammer Game” to see how God's grace smashes through first-century status and identity walls. From the radical social reclassification of Philemon and Onesimus to the barrier-breaking dinner tables of Peter and Cornelius, we look at how grace functions as the ultimate social leveler. We also discuss historical insights from Pliny the Younger, an ancient prayer turned completely on its head, and what it practically means to be a “face receiver” in our modern, divided culture. Grab your sledgehammer and let's pull up a chair to grace's unlikely community!
The Big Idea: Grace doesn't just forgive isolated individuals — it reclassifies enemies and strangers into an uncommon family.
This Week's Challenge: Audit your relationships this week for any "scorecards" you’re keeping on someone and consciously "burn the list" by finding one way to receive from them as an equal contributor in Christ.
Show Notes
28 May 2026, 6:38 pm - 48 minutes 9 secondsGrace in the Old Testament | "So Good, You Are the Worst"
284 | Experience the Grace of the Old Testament
Think the Old Testament God is all thunder, lightning, and judgment while the New Testament God is all gracious and loving? Think again! This week, we're diving into the exact moment God defined Himself right after Israel's absolute worst failure — the golden calf incident. It turns out Exodus 34:6–7 is essentially the "John 3:16 of the Old Testament." We pull apart deep Hebrew concepts like “rachum” (visceral, gut-level compassion) and “hesed” (loyal, covenant love), explore why Jonah tried to weaponize God's goodness as a complaint, and discover that Jesus isn't a shift from the Father — He's the perfect, face-to-face reflection of who God has always been.
The Big Idea: God’s grace isn't a New Testament update, it is the heartbeat of his character from the beginning.
This Week's Challenge: Before you check your phone in the morning, let the God of Sinai define his heart toward you: merciful, gracious, and abounding in steadfast love.
Show Notes
- Watch Episode 284 (VIDEO)
- God Declares His Character (PASSAGE)
- Jonah's Complaint About Mercy (PASSAGE)
- Draw Near for More Grace (PASSAGE)
- Full of Grace and Truth (PASSAGE)
- He Will Rejoice Over You With Singing (PASSAGE)
21 May 2026, 8:06 pm - 41 minutes 32 secondsBracket Winner: Esther | "I Put On an Audiobook"
283 | Walk by Faith Not Sight
Our Bible bracket has a winner, and it's none other than the cinematic, high-stakes Queen of Persia — Esther! But why is God's name totally missing from the script? This week, we're geeking out on the "shadow cabinet" of the Persian court, looking for the fingerprints of a God who works through insomnia, coincidences, and "reverse cards" to save His people. Whether you're dealing with your own Haman or feeling stuck in exile, Esther’s story reminds us that silence doesn’t mean absence. Ready to see how God's hidden hand is at work in your own "for such a time as this" moment? Tune in study with us!
The Big Idea: God’s providence is often hidden, but his character is certain, and that’s enough as we walk in faith.
This Week's Challenge: Look back at your own life and identify the "dominoes" where God’s hidden providence worked through seemingly random circumstances to bring about a good outcome.
Show Notes
14 May 2026, 11:30 pm - 43 minutes 34 secondsRescuing Romans 7 | "Retrain My Brain"
282 | Find Hope in the Struggle
Ever feel like you’re stuck in a loop of doing the very things you hate? This week, we’re joined by our friend Allen Greeley to tackle what some call the “Mount Everest of Pauline issues”: Romans 7. From a debate that started on a ski lift to a deep dive into the “already, not yet” of our adoption as sons, we’re looking at how to navigate the very real struggle with sin without losing our hope in Christ. Whether you see Paul as a struggling Christian or a Jew under the law, one thing is clear: chapter 7 only makes sense when you flip the page to the "no condemnation" victory of chapter 8.
The Big Idea: Christians don’t lead a life of sinless perfection, but of Spirit-led hope, power, and grace amid the struggle.
This Week's Challenge: Read Romans 7 and 8 back-to-back this week, noting how every "wretched" moment in chapter seven finds its resolution in the "no condemnation" of chapter eight.
Show Notes
7 May 2026, 4:54 pm - 48 minutes 11 secondsThe Family Table | "Thou Shalt Party"
281 | Reclaim the Holiness of Your Table
Are you feeling more lonely than ever, even with all those digital connections? Why is it that God seems to do His best work when there’s food involved? This week, we’re exploring why “pulling up a chair” is a radical act of spiritual warfare against the isolation of our age. We’re diving into the “bread of presence,” Jesus’ scandalous dinner parties, and that incredible moment on the road to Emmaus where the breaking of bread changed everything. Whether it’s a “stinker” of a wedding or a cozy, imperfect “pitch-in,” the table is where we move from performance to presence. It’s time to drop the digital veil and get back to the “baked bean supper“ connection!
The Big Idea: God uses shared meals to break loneliness, build community, and reveal His presence in our lives.
This Week's Challenge: Invite someone you only know digitally to share a simple meal in your home this week.
Show Notes
- Watch Episode 281 (VIDEO)
- "The Breaking of Bread" by Bryan Schiele (SERMON)
- "Food — Ordinary Holiness"”" by Ryan Joy (SERMON)
- “Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?: A Biblical Theology of the Book of Leviticus” by L. Michale Morales (BOOK)
- Fellowship Offerings (PASSAGE)
- The Bread of Presence (PASSAGE)
- Dining with Jesus (PASSAGE)
- Fellowship in the Early Church (PASSAGE)
- Eyes Opened at the Table (PASSAGE)
- Marriage Supper of the Lamb (PASSAGE)
30 April 2026, 4:39 pm - 25 minutes 23 secondsMini: Grace's Asterisks | "The Tingle Means It's Working"
280 | Trade Your Asterisks for Confidence
Do you find yourself believing God’s promises, but always with an asterisk attached? This week, we're diving into those common "Yeah, but" moments — like wondering if you can really know you're saved, feeling like you don't deserve grace, or worrying that God is still angry about your latest struggle. We'll walk through why your "faith-o-meter" isn't the point and why the "tingle" of struggling with sin might actually be a sign of growth. Join us as we stop trying to manage the conditions of God’s gifts and start resting in a grace that is, quite literally, too good to be earned.
The Big Idea: We find freedom and peace when we trust the Bible’s words about God’s grace.
This Week's Challenge: Identify a personal "Yeah, but" about grace and replace it with a specific scripture truth this week.
Show Notes
23 April 2026, 3:17 pm - 50 minutes 6 secondsUnveiled | "Not Diane Sawyer"
279 | Behold the Lord and Be Changed
Ever feel like your spiritual life is just a never-ending construction site full of sweat and long to-do lists? What if the Bible's real model for change isn't a renovation project, but a mirror? This week, Ryan’s playing “Diane Sawyer” and interviewing Bryan about his recent “Unveiled” preaching series in Plainfield, Indiana. We’re digging into why we're so obsessed with “image management” and why we keep snacking on the world's junk food when we’re spiritually bored. It turns out, we don't have to knuckle down to grow — we just have to take the veil off, stop pretending, and become what we behold.
The Big Idea: Transformation isn't a project we’ll complete, it’s the image we reflect as we keep turning our faces toward Jesus.
This Week's Challenge: Identify an area where you are performing or wearing a “mask” and take the veil off by being honest with God about that struggle.
Show Notes
16 April 2026, 3:02 pm - 39 minutes 32 secondsUnnamed Heroines | "To Quote Bob Marley"
278 | Value Every Role in God's Kingdom
What if the most important person in your favorite Bible story didn't even have a name? We’re wrapping up our regional deep dives by celebrating the "Nameless Notables" — the background actors and extras who ended up stealing the show. From a little girl pointing a powerful general toward healing to wise women saving entire cities just by speaking up, we’re seeing how small acts of faith create massive domino effects. We even dive into the "Hot Seat" to ask why Jesus used the word "dog" with a Canaanite mother and what really happened with Jephthah’s daughter. Grab your bracket and let’s remember that in God’s story, there really are no small parts!
The Big Idea: In God’s kingdom, there are no insignificant roles, as even anonymous acts of faith can trigger a life-changing domino effect.
This Week's Challenge: Look for an opportunity this week to speak up or step into the gap like the nameless heroes of Scripture.
Show Notes
9 April 2026, 2:49 pm - More Episodes? Get the App