On today’s episode, Sharon and Lori introduce you to a remarkable woman - Cheryl Snow, Program Manager for Oklahoma Dept. of Rehabilitation Services. Cheryl holds several degrees, has home schooled her daughters, been involved in many local organizations, and all while having varying degrees of major vision loss. She loves to tell how God has empowered her life, the lives of her family, and those she serves in her career. Her story will certainly inspire you!

Grace is not: control, manipulation, behavior modification, judgmentalism.

Grace is: unpredictable, messy, scary…a choice, a way of life, freedom, living by the Spirit.

So why is it so difficult for both “big C” and “little c” church to embrace?

There was no way we could do just one podcast with Marcy about this topic! Join us for part 2!

In past podcasts we've talked a lot about what we see as issues with the organized church. Our good friend Marcy McConnell was on staff of a church for almost 20 years. We wanted to hear her perspective - from the "inside."

Jesus prayed for unity and oneness among His children. But denominations can divide us. There are real differences and valid conversations to be had about faith and scripture. How can we have those discussions respectfully and still love each other? What makes it so hard to connect and experience the unity Christ has for us?

Groupthink – the practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility.

Critical Thinking – disciplined thinking that is clear, rational, open-minded, and informed by evidence.

We see groupthink in politics, social media, everywhere in our culture. And it’s in the Christian culture, too. Have you seen groupthink affect your own life? Are you a critical thinker?

Another episode in The End and the Beginning series.

Jesus revealed the end of the law and the beginning of grace in what He said and did. We saw new pictures of this in stories we’ve known and read over and over. There are so many examples of this, but we narrowed it down to some of our favorites, and they are amazing and sweet!

It is true that Christians tend to stay in abusive marriages longer than non-Christians. We believe much of the reason is unreasonable and reckless “biblical” views. In this episode we share some of what we’ve come across in our ministry. Although some scenarios are extreme, and some may sound frivolous, the underlying problems are the same. 1) Too often there is more concern for the institution of marriage than there is for the abused people within the marriage, and 2) there is more pressure put on the wife to “fix” the problems, as in to submit more, pray more, and be more patient – sometimes even unto death.