During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology – the first in a series of three – we’re going to delve into some pretty spicy subject matter in the colorful Old Testament book of Zephaniah regarding the overt rebellion of God’s people.

We’re going to examine how our spiritual ancestors effectively thumbed their noses at God’s holiness, turned their backs on His kindness, and went out and did whatever nasty, selfish stuff their crooked little hearts desired.

Plus, they did so despite His gracious warning that there would be serious consequences for their wicked behavior. My guess is things are about to get a little hot up in here so you might want to bring an iced latte to the porch today!

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to bring this 4- part series on prayer to a close, which is kind of like taking the very last bite of the very last brownie in a pan. It’s left me wanting more. A few nights ago, I found myself rereading some of the material I’d studied on prayer in preparation for this series and got lost in an old book my dad gave me many years ago by a saint named, E.M. Bounds. He was an attorney and Civil War soldier, who then became a pastor after being seriously wounded in the war, and ultimately a devoted practitioner and prolific author on prayer. I’d almost forgotten that great man of prayer was the pastor of a church right here in Franklin, TN in the late 1800’s, just a few miles from our house. So I drove past his old church, the First United Methodist Church on Fifth Avenue yesterday, and pondered a few of his observations on prayer:

• Prayer is not learned in a classroom but in the closet.
• Prayer breaks all bars, dissolves all chains, opens all prisons, and widens all straits by which God’s saints have been held.
• I would rather have prayer without words than words without prayer.

And finally it was E.M. Bounds who described Christoformity as the consummate shape of prayer, “When we see how the life of Jesus was but one of prayer, then we must conclude that to be like Jesus is to pray like Jesus.” We’re calling today’s episode - our swan song on The Theology of Prayer - “How God Himself Said Grace.” So please grab a cup of coffee, your Bible, and a prayer journal – or my favorite thing to write notes on, which is a neon sticky pad – and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

Today's episode on Back Porch Theology is really special. I mean, all of them are really special. It's kind of like choosing your favorite ice cream flavor, but this feels more like a real family episode, because I get to bring in some friends from the Found Collective. Found Collective is a new event for women to lean more fully into Jesus with Bible teachers and worship leaders. I've got three of my dear friends from the Found Collective, Hosanna Wong, amazing Bible teacher, spoken word artist, Kari Jobe, who's like a little sister, and one of my favorite modern-day psalmists, and Taya Gaukrodger. Taya is also just an amazing artist and worship leader, and we are just kind of hanging out on the porch talking about Jesus, talking about salvation and all that He's done for us. So, this is a little more testimonial than some of our other episodes, which means I hope you are wearing stretchy pants or something comfortable. I hope you've got some sweet tea or your favorite coffee. We want you to lean back, put your feet up, and just enjoy this time of leaning into the embrace of Jesus more fully on the porch. We are so glad you're here! 

For tickets to Found: Please visit https://foundcollective.com/

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

What happens with the supernatural starts to become more natural?

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re peeling off whatever emotional Spanx are left and getting totally vulnerable in the praxis of prayer. This is our third conversation in a 4-part series we’ve titled The Theology of Prayer.

Our fervent hope and prayer is that the time we get to spend on the porch today will help demystify the glorious sacrament of prayer and serve as an encouraging catalyst for all of us to become more confident and consistent in our conversations with God.

So please grab a cup of coffee – although decaf might be the best option since we’re going to learn a few anxiety-pulverizing prayers – your Bible, and a prayer journal if you have one and come exhale into the kindness of King Jesus with us. We’re glad you’re here.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

How do you pray?

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, we’re rolling up our sleeves in this second of a 4-part series on prayer and getting practical because we’re going to talk about the awesomely vast and varied praxis of prayer.

In my experience, far too many of us have been taught - overtly or tacitly - that there’s one “right” way to pray and unfortunately the implication we perceived is that we’re a square peg in the round hole of prayer and don’t know how to “correctly” commune with God. The prayers recorded in the redemptive history of God’s people are wonderfully diverse. There are short prayers and long prayers and quiet petitions and shouted pleas, they reflect both the rapture and the rupture of real people experiencing real life!

What IS a common denominator in the conversations people had with our Creator in Scripture is the awareness that we humans can’t make it by ourselves - we NEED His divine help!

So please grab a cup of coffee or glass of sweet tea or thimble full of wheat grass juice, a couple of snacks, your Bible and a prayer journal if you have one - otherwise a couple of sticky notes will do - and come hang out on the porch with us. We’re really glad you’re here.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

Ever wonder why do we pray?

Today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology is the first of a four-part series we’re really excited and passionate about called The Theology of Prayer. Alli, Dr. Howard and I have talked and dreamed and pondered and of course prayed about doing a series on prayer for years, and I think the main reason it’s taken us so long to finally record this series is because the glorious rich, nuanced, profound, practical and transformative experience of communing with our Creator Redeemer is kind of like the mouth-watering brisket they serve at Buccees.

Karl Barth – one of my favorite theologians wrote this, “To clasp the hands in prayer is the beginning of an uprising against the disorder of the world.” Isn’t that good? I’m not nearly as wise as those saints but in my experience of being a Christ-follower for more than half a century now, I’ve found prayer to be the very scaffolding of my security and contentment.

At this point in my life, prayer is as necessary and life-giving as breathing. We’re really looking forward to the next couple of episodes and we’re so grateful to get to share them with y’all.

You can enjoy a $75 discount on your Kerygma tickets when you purchase two by applying the code BIGBIBLES2. Alternatively, if you buy three tickets, you’ll receive a $150 discount with the code BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, the very last stop in our topsy-turvy tour through Judges, we’re going to hang out with a hot mess of a man who was my favorite character in biblical narrative – apart from Jesus, of course – when I was a little girl. His name was Samson and I’m not sure why I was so captivated by him when I was a kid because for most of his life, he was a rebel without a clue. Although Sam’s birth announcement was engraved by an angel, and he was doted on by good and godly parents who suffered through decades of infertility before they got pregnant with him, he rejected their morality and devotion to God and went careening in the opposite direction. I’m not going to spoil the audacious end of his story in this preview, but if you’ve been on the porch for the last few episodes, you know that divine redemption is always lurking in the darkest alleys of humanity. Dr. Tim Keller explained it beautifully, “The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” We’re serving up extra portions of hope on the porch today, so we’re delighted you’ve chosen to pull up a chair to chow down with us. Please grab your favorite beverage, and a Bible and let’s dive into this divine love story and remind our prone-to-wander selves of the miraculous redemption available to us because God’s faithfulness has always been weightier than our flaws!

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s podcast on Back Porch Theology we’re exploring one of the greatest leaders in the history of God’s people who just so happens to be a chick named Deb! She was both a judge and a prophetess. Which means she was kind of like a president and pastor rolled into one - the entire prone-to-wander nation of Israel turned to her for leadership, wisdom, and spiritual guidance. And another unlikely heroine makes her debut during Deborah’s timeline, too. Her name was Jael and let me tell you, that woman was LEGIT - she could have held her own against a burly, tatted MMA fighter twice her size! Even though these women’s stories take place long before David’s in redemptive history, they illustrate what God said to Samuel about Davey when he was anointed to be the future king of Israel before he even started shaving, “People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” In other words, God delights in using misfits in miraculous ways. Don’t forget, the book of Judges was a bleak chapter in the history of God’s people – there was no king on the throne, the Word of God was not being taught in the land, and most people were doing whatever crooked little hearts desired. It looked as if their toes were hanging over the edge of obscurity. And based on their rebellion and idolatry, they deserved to be fried into greased spots of oblivion by some divine lightning bolt. Instead, our Heavenly Father inserts a couple of unlikely heroes into their drama, which results in an epic military victory as well as a national revival. The brightest mornings often follow the darkest nights when we give God the sole authorship of our story. It a great day to hang out on the porch, so please grab your favorite beverage, your Bible, and a snack and come prop your feet up with us. We love getting to spend this time with you.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re diving into our second in a series called The Theology of ROAR that explores the cyclical, increasingly damaging nature of unconfessed sin. Unbridled rebellion is like a hoard of hungry termites on a piece of damp wood, it eats away at our emotional and relational integrity until there’s nothing left but dust and regret. But here’s the great news, throughout human history God has consistently interrupted the chaos of our rebellion with His compassionate spirit. And when Holy Spirit permeates our conscious, we become not simply cognizant that we’re unwell, we become aware that our Creator is also our Healer. Contrary to the flawed reasoning of many in modern culture, a heightened awareness of our own sin nature doesn’t lead to depression, instead it shifts our fallenness into the realm of real hope! It’s what Jesus was talking about in Mark chapter two when He said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor – sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” Today we’re going to get up close and personal with a dude who did just that. He started out as a weenie but ended up an epic warrior in God’s kingdom, once again proving that you can start bad and end up awesome when grace invades your story. We’re so grateful you’ve carved out this time to hang out on the porch with us; getting to lean into the unconditional love of God with y’all has become a habit we hope we don’t ever have to break! Which reminds me, if you haven’t already, will you please subscribe to BPT on whatever app you use to listen to podcasts? Your subscriptions ensure that Alli, Dr. Howard and I get to keep doing this podcast, so thank you very, very much.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re diving into a new series called The Theology of ROAR – that’s an acronym for Rebellion, Oppression, Asking for God’s Forgiveness, and Restoration. And you’re going to need to buckle your seat belts for this one because we’re taking an exegetical tour through a really tumultuous time in redemptive history when there was no king on the throne, the Word of God was not being taught in the land, and people were doing whatever their crooked little hearts desired. It was essentially the Wild West of idolatry and rebellion, which quickly led to bondage and oppression, and finally – when God’s image bearers were sick of being flat on their face in the stinky muck of their consequences – they looked up and asked Him to forgive them. And He did…over and over again. Fortunately for humanity, the Bible is riddled with true stories that illustrate how a thimbleful of sincere repentance has the power to unleash an avalanche of divine restoration. Sin is anything but innocuous, y’all – it robs us of peace, shoplifts our joy, fertilizes addictive and narcissistic behavioral patterns, which erode trust and intimacy with our friends and families, and worst still sin creates heartbreaking distance between us and the God who loves us more than we can ask or imagine. And yet His grace is greater still. There is no confessed sin so grievous that it has the power to permanently catapult outside of our Savior’s ability to redeem the ruins of our lives into something truly beautiful. Where there’s real repentance, there is always restoration. Remember how Holy Spirit often manifests as wind in both the Old and New Testament canons? Well, I think some saints are going to get a fresh gust of it in their sagging sails today; no matter what lies the enemy has been whispering to you in the dark when you feel completely alone and like the last drop of hope is draining out of the colander of your heart, I promise, this doesn’t have to be the end of your story. Today’s going to be a good day on the porch and we’re very grateful we get to spend it with you. So please grab a cup of coffee and your Bible and come lean into some fresh grace with us.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.

During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology we’re going to dive deep into a miraculous, modern story that highlights how God can take what seem to be the absolute ruins of a life and restore them into a spiritual leader. Sometimes we forget that Abraham was a lunar worshipper before God tapped him to be the father of a theocracy; that Moses was guilty of homicide before God tapped him to lead His people out of captivity; that Elijah had a massive meltdown under a broom tree after witnessing God’s powerful presence on Mt. Carmel; or that John the Baptist – the forerunner of our Messiah – literally doubted the divinity of Jesus when he was languishing in prison. Biblical narrative is riddled with stories about saints who lost their way, only to run headlong into divine mercy in the middle of literal and proverbial deserts. Playwright Oscar Wilde – whose reputation was much more playboy than choirboy – sure spoke the truth when he wrote,“Every Saint Has a Past and Every Sinner Has a Future.” The testimony you’re about to hear is a poignant antidote for shame and loneliness…it will expose ugly, insidious lies like, “I’m too dirty or too damaged to deserve true love” to the light of the Gospel where they’ll shrivel up and die. Frankly, some of the most radiant believers I’ve ever met – certainly the most authentic and grateful Christ-followers – are the ones with the most brokenness in their backstory. In light of John’s proclamation in Revelation 12 – that the enemy is defeated by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony – I believe the next forty minutes has enough tangible hope to help more than a few begin to break free from heavy emotional bondage. However, some of the subject matter we’re going to cover isn’t suited for little ears so if you normally listen in the car with your kiddos in the backseat, please wait until those precious punkins’ aren’t within earshot to pull your chair up to the porch. And when you do so, please bring a large cup of coffee, a few of your favorite snacks, and your Bible - then feel free to exhale and prop your feet up because this is a safe place to relax and lean further into the unconditional love of Jesus, no matter what your backstory is.

Kerygma Sale! Invite a friend or two and take advantage of a $75 discount on two tickets or $150 off three tickets by entering the codes BIGBIBLES2 or BIGBIBLES3. Visit https://www.kerygmasummit.com/

Lisa Harper’s Luke Study is available here.