The Dialog

It was 96 degrees in Texas in March, and Nick's wife was 36 miles into a 50-mile ultramarathon when he pulled her out of the race. That night she was in the hospital.

Nick says he never felt fear. He told every doctor she would walk out the front door of that hospital, and she did. We set prosperity aside this week, and my co-host Nick Surface and I talk about trusting God when the outcome isn't yours to control.

Why do we always imagine the worst?
We picture a horrible outcome, tell ourselves we couldn't handle it, then treat it as the most likely one. The question I come back to is: what am I going to do right now?

Do you need certainty to have faith?
No. In 1 Samuel 14, Jonathan tells his armor-bearer, "Perhaps the Lord will help us." Fear is a negative expectation of the future. Faith is a positive one.

How do you start?
Seek God with your whole heart, get your heart in neutral, and start small: lions and bears before giants.

Scriptures
Psalm 121 · Joshua 1:9 · James 1:2 · Psalm 139 · Hebrews 11:1 · 1 Samuel 14:6-7 · Ephesians 2:10 · Jeremiah 29:13

People and ideas
The Stoics · Steve Prefontaine · Tony Robbins · Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God · Josh's dad: faith is divine risk

Chapters
0:00 Cold open and show intro
0:52 A change of plans
2:02 A 50-mile ultramarathon on a 96-degree day
5:31 The hospital and a doctor who stepped in
6:30 What happened in the hospital
7:34 "God knew the whole time"
8:17 Psalm 121 on the way to the ER
10:36 Be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:9)
13:48 "This was a training moment"
14:57 Count it all joy (James 1:2)
17:29 Grace, gratitude and joy in the Greek
19:05 The antidote to anxiety is gratitude
20:14 Psalm 139: God's hand on your life
24:47 Grace you can't earn, faith you live by
27:14 Joy is a knowing, not a feeling
29:02 Psalm 103 and an eternal perspective
33:44 Fear is a future-focused emotion
34:55 Waiting for the other shoe to drop
39:36 What a bad training run teaches about fear
42:10 Why the worst outcome feels most likely
44:47 What am I going to do right now?
45:55 Hebrews 11 and a search for certainty
47:51 Whatever you honor, you get more of
53:18 1 Samuel 14: "Perhaps the Lord"
54:26 Don't sacrifice the gift
1:01:32 Fear and faith are both expectations
1:05:03 Everything matters, even a normal day
1:06:58 Ephesians 2:10 and the good works ahead
1:08:49 Faith as divine risk
1:12:19 How do you start living this way?
1:13:31 Two weeks of money left
1:15:09 Your heart in neutral
1:16:32 Brother Lawrence and the presence of God
1:18:28 Start with the Gospel of John
1:19:49 Interrupted by grace

Previous: 1.23 / Where did your beliefs about money come from?
Next: 1.25 / Is tithing biblical today?

New episodes most weeks.

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Go to my website / https://jkc.is

What is The Dialog?

Ancient philosophers used the dialog to find answers to life’s greatest questions. The Dialog is a search for truth in modern life through the lens of ancient philosophy, history, and theology. This podcast will challenge your assumptions, change your thinking and show you how to master modern living.