Following Jesus faithfully in our current cultural moment.
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Hey friends, I just wanted to pop in here and say "Thank you!" to all of you who've reached out and expressed that you're praying for me and my family with the health issues that have come up in the last couple of months. I'm grateful that I am feeling better. My energy is recovering and the last several weeks have been quite a bit better all aroun…
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Health Update + Live Free Video Series Launch Delay
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Hello friends, This month has been a pretty difficult month for us as a family. I've been hit with some fairly significant health issues and it has led us to put pretty much everything on hold as we seek out some answers. Here's an update on everything. We envy your prayers and thank you for your participation in this work! Grace and peace. Asher…
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The Bible Is Not about You - It's about God and His Partnership with Humanity
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Sometimes we mistakenly center ourselves in the story of the Bible, as though the Bible is all about answering our questions and giving us direction for life. But the Bible is not simply about helping us navigate through life successfully. It could be said the Bible is about God—who he is, what he has done, and what he is doing. More specifically, …
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What Does Asher Actually Believe about Gender?? (Responding to Questions)
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I recently published an article, Is It Sinful to Use “Transgender Pronouns”? In the article, I explored how Rosaria Butterfield recently “repented” from using what she calls, “transgender pronouns.” Why is she doing that? Should you feel the same way? A few people responded with some questions that I thought were worth responding to in a specific e…
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#100 - Jesus Sees Himself As Embedded within a Large Story
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How does the rest of the world view the Christianity that comes from the West? David Swartz does a wonderful job giving us reminding us that evangelical networks not only go out to, but also come from, the ends of the earth as he shares stories of resistance, accommodation, and cooperation in his book Facing West. Then we dive into the third paradi…
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#099 - The Bible Is a Collection of Writings by Various Authors
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God Doesn't Waste a Thing! That's the book I talk about at the beginning of this episode. Even when life has changed in inconvenient ways, God will use it to further his purposes, as Luke Chance shares in his beautiful testimony of redemption. After the blurb about the book, we dive into the second paradigm shift that helps us better understand the…
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#098 - The Bible Is a Story: Everything That Does and Doesn't Mean
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This week I discuss two books I've been reading, Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar Dillard and Becoming Free Indeed by Jinger Duggar Vuolo, and an important lesson I was reminded of as I've read them. Then, we dive into everything it does and doesn't mean that the Bible is a story. Does the fact that the Bible is a story mean we don't have follow an…
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#097 - God Gave Us His Word Through Story -- A Paradigm Shift
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Hey friends! Welcome to 2024! To kick things off, I'm going to be sharing a series of episodes with you that addresses how we ought to interact with scripture. It'll be a paradigm shift for many of us: the Bible is a story, not a reference book. Today's episode introduces it all. Enjoy! How does viewing the Bible as story instead of as a reference …
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#096 - End of Year Reflections + My Five Favorite Reads
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As an end of year roundup, I discuss the interviews I did in 2023 that were highlights to me plus share my top 5 reads of the year. Here are some time-stamps for the episode: The birth of our daughter (0:32). My three favorite conversations from the last year (1:56). Quarterly guided studies coming up in 2024 (24:42). WAP in 2024 (27:43). My five f…
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#095 - Three Lessons about Spiritual Abuse I Learned the Hard Way
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This episode is exclusively for our valued patrons on Patreon. In this episode, I dive into three valuable lessons I've learned the hard way about spiritual abuse. These lessons aren't just "failures vs. successes," but rather insights gained through challenging experiences that can benefit us all. Access the episode here. Here's what you can expec…
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#094 - The Church Is Not As Bad Off As We May Think
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In this episode, I share some reflections on being a part of the Christian community, particularly relating to my experiences with the challenges of maintaining faith within flawed institutions. I opened up about my previous experiences with panic attacks, depression, and dealing with some personal and systemic issues in church communities, which s…
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#093 - Unfeigned Christianity Update: Where I’ve Been and Where We’re Going
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It's been three months since I released an update. I share why in this personal update. What would you like to see from this channel going forward?? You can send your feedback to podcast@asherwitmer.com. If you'd like to check out the Dwell App, click here. Be sure to rate and review the podcast to let us know what you thought. Subscribe to our ema…
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#092 - A Conversation about Parenting, Women's Roles in the Church, & Participation in Broken Systems with Dorcas Smucker
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It was a pleasure to sit down with Dorcas Smucker and discuss all kinds of things, not the least of which included parenting. We spent a good bit of time in the expanded version reflecting on some of the broken systems we've been a part of and talking about what to do when we realize we are currently participating in such a system. You can access t…
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#091 - Why Women Should Get Theological Training w/ Kristi Mast
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I had the honor of talking with Kristi Mast about her experience in Bible college, discovering the whole scope of Scripture more in-depth, and the importance of women getting this sort of Bible training. Kristi serves on staff with Sattler College, and has recently published a Bible study specifically designed for guided women through the process o…
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#090 - Discover Your Place in God's Story
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I am SO EXCITED to tell you that we've opened enrollment once again to Finding My Place in God's Story. I share the full scoop in today's episode of Unfeigned Christianity. Finding My Place in God's Story walks you through a 5-part process for understanding scripture and discovering your life's purpose. You can learn all the details about the cou…
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#089 - What It Looks Like to Live Out God’s Story
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"If the Bible is story and not a reference book where we find answers to theological questions, moral guidance for navigating ethical issues, or inspiration for the day, what are we to do when we face ethical struggles? Are you telling me not to go to the Bible for answers? What do we do with the various beliefs about God and doctrine and so forth?…
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#088 - How to Read the Bible As Story
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As we continue our series on how to connect with God and your purpose through His story, we take a deep dive into what God's story is and how to read the Bible as story. Just like all good stories, in God's story there are many moving pieces and it can be easy to miss the story unless we take time to step back and observe it fully. That's what we l…
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#087 - Connect with God and Your Purpose Through His Story
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Do you long to be close with God and have a deeper confidence that you know why you exist? I think many people feel distant from God and unclear about life because they haven't gotten a good grasp of His story. In this episode, we're beginning a three-part series on finding connection with God and clarity about life purpose through a better underst…
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#086 - Reading the Bible As Story w/ Ricky Miller
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My friend, Ricky Miller, joins me to discuss reading the Bible as story. Discovering the story nature of scripture has radically changed the way Ricky views the Bible. While this approach can feel modern, it's actually a more historically accurate approach to scripture. We've simply grown accustomed to the more rigid approach to scripture perpetuat…
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#085 - Reading Scripture As Literature w/ Dru Lattin
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Dru joins me once again to dive deep into reading scripture as literature. How does this shape the way we interpret the Bible? Listen and find out! You can hear more from Dru on his own podcast, That Jesus Podcast, where he explores what it means to be a radical apprentice of King Jesus. If you'd like to check out the Dwell App, click here. Be sure…
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#084 - Responding to Questions about Spanking, Same-Sex Attraction, and Sheila Wray Gregoire
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In this episode, I take some time to respond to feedback I've gotten over the last couple of months about my interviews on spanking, same-sex attraction, and Sheila Wray Gregoire. If you'd like to check out the Dwell App, click here. Be sure to rate and review the podcast to let us know what you thought. Once you're finished, I'd love to hear how t…
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#083 - Using Data Responsibly (w/ Byran Smucker)
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How can statistics demonstrate the attributes of God? What does it look like for Christians to engage data honestly? I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with Byran Smucker on using data responsibly. Byran lives in Hamilton, OH (close to Cincinnati) with his wife, Amy, and their four children. He has a PhD in Statistics and Operations Research from…
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#082 - Laurie Krieg on What Her Mixed-Orientation Marriage Has Taught Her about Love and the Gospel
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What is the purpose of marriage? Is it possible to marry the wrong person? What do you do if you find yourself in a marriage that feels impossible, like an impossible marriage? I'm honored to have as my guest this week, Laurie Krieg. Along with being a wife and mother, she's an author and serves on the board of the Center for Faith, Sexuality & Gen…
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#081 - Spanking As Sexual Violence Against Children
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Did you know spanking can cause some children to experience sexual arousal? I didn't either until recent months. In this week's episode of Unfeigned Christianity, we dive into this with my guest sharing personal experience and research on the topic. In the expanded version, we discuss how to discipline children without spanking them, particularly w…
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#080 - Finding Belonging in Singleness (Greg Coles Interview Pt. 2)
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In Part 2 of my conversation with Greg Coles, we look at how to find belonging in singleness. Our conversation touches on aspects of his second book, No Longer Strangers: Finding Belonging in a World of Alienation. You can check out the rest of Greg's work and his book at https://www.gregorycoles.com/. Also, if you'd like to check out the Dwell App…
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#079 - Single, Gay, and Christian (Greg Coles Interview Pt. 1)
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I'm super stoked to share with you my conversation with Greg Coles. We discuss his memoir, Single, Gay, Christian: A Personal Journey of Faith and Sexual Identity. This episode is Part 1 of my conversation with him as we look at what it means to be gay and how to walk faithfully with Jesus while being undeniably gay. You can check out Greg's work a…
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#078 - Sheila Wray Gregoire on the Lies We've Been Taught about Sex & How to Recover What God Intended
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Sheila has written many books on sex, but in The Great Sex Rescue, she specifically addresses the ways in which many Christian books and teachers on sex have misled people about what sex is and what healthy sex in marriage looks like. We dive into all of that in today's episode. We spend an extra 10-15 minutes talking about what she would tell her …
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#077 - Social Work as an Act of Justice w/ Lowell Herschberger
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I recently had the privilege of interviewing my friend Lowell Herschberger about his work as a social worker. I loved my conversation with him as a way of learning how to do justice as disciples of Jesus. We get into what it's like to work with a secular government, how Christians can serve as social workers in good conscience, and much more. In th…
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#076 - A Conversation on Power, Gender, and Roles within Creation w/ Rebekah Mui & Dru Lattin
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In this week's episode, I was privileged to be joined by Rebekah Mui and Dru Lattin to discuss power, gender, and roles. Now, we recorded this episode in early February, so we don't discuss any of the conversations that have taken place around the Christian world regarding gender and sexuality in the last month or so. But this episode is powerful, …
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#075 - Dylo Cadet on Abuse That Happens in the Name of "Mission Work"
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I'm honored to be joined by Dylo Cadet to discuss his recent book, In the Name of "Mission Work." Dylo is a native Haitian who was raised in a loving Christian family. For almost a decade he has worked with different mission agencies from the Anabaptist denomination. He is a husband and a young father of two. Dylo firmly believes that truth is our …
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#074 - What Are We to Make of All the Commentary about Asbury?
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There has been a lot of commentary around the revival taking place at Asbury University. What are we to make of it all? What are we to make of Asbury? What are we to make of revivals? All this and more on this week's episode. Be sure to rate and review the podcast to let us know what you thought. I'd love to hear your feedback on the episode. What …
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#073 - What Does Jesus Really Say about Divorce & Remarriage? (w/ Dwight Gingrich)
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I am thrilled to share with you all my conversation with one of my friends and mentors, Dwight Gingrich. He has been doing an in-depth study on divorce and remarriage. So far he has looked at the historical Anabaptist perspective on the exception clause and some of Jesus' teachings on divorce and remarriage. He plans to finish up Jesus' teachings a…
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#072 - Dru Lattin on How Our Faith Changes As Life Unfolds
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Got to sit down with my friend, Dru Lattin and discuss "deconstruction" from a pastoral perspective. Although, we both acknowledge there are terms we like better. Basically, we talk about the ways our faith has changed as we gain more experiences. Hope you enjoy! Also, if you'd like to check out the Dwell App, click here. Be sure to rate and review…
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#071 - The 3 Biggest Surprises I've Faced in Bible College
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In today's episode, I share how Bible college has impacted me. I specifically share the three biggest surprises I've faced in the five years of Bible college so far. In the expanded version, I also go into detail about the two biggest challenges. You can access that version right here. Also, if you would like to check out the Dwell App for yourself…
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#070 - Why Should the Church Care about Racial/Cultural Issues? (Keeshon Washington)
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My friend Keeshon is back on to discuss some of the work he's been involved with lately, his journey of forgiving his parents, and why the church should care about racial issues (or other cultural issues). Has the church learned anything in the last couple of years with racial tensions at the forefront of American society? We also spend some time i…
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#069 - [NEW AUDIOBOOK] Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality
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You can now purchase Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality as an audiobook! Click Here to get your own copy! If you would like to see my recent reviews of the book (and an explanation for why it took so long to get an audiobook), you can access them here. Also, don't forget about our BLACK FRIDAY DEAL where you can order your own copy of Live F…
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With this final chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com, we wrap up my review of my first book. Yes, there are things I would say differently. But I'm grateful this books has blessed and helped as many people as it already has. I believe it will continue to. What about you? What do you think? Have you read it? Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOU…
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#067 - Accountability, Internet Filters, and the Fear of God
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In this second-to-last chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com, I discuss the role accountability and internet filters can play in living in sexual freedom. I'm grateful I didn't address any earlier in the book. Find out why in today's episode! Mentioned in the episode is my interview with Arthur Nisly where we discuss handling internet filters …
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#066 - You Can Live without Sex, but Not without Intimacy
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Is it true that men pursue conquest primarily through a cause worth living for while women pursue conquest primarily through relationships? I don't think I'd say it that way if I wrote chapter 18 of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com, today. I explain why in today's episode. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of …
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#065 - What I Learned about Purpose While Reading a Book in One Sitting
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We can find our life's purpose by seeing where God has already worked in our lives. That's what we look at in chapter 17 of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality for 70% off!! Just visit this link: https://amzn.to/392AxTX. Check out the…
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What is the mark that you are leaving in this world? What is the specific way you are participating in the greater story God is writing? Finding that and pouring energy into that is key to staying free from unwanted sexual behaviors. We discuss it more in chapter 16 of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- Y…
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#063 - In the Middle of Something Bigger Than Ourselves
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A crucial part of staying free is discovering how our sexuality fits into God's larger story. That's what this chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com is all about. Mentioned in this episode is our course, Finding My Place in God's Story. Enrollment ends at midnight tonight. If you would like to learn more about the course and consider enrolling…
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I would use a different word than "conqueror" if I wrote this chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com again. There are a few other ways in which I talk about purpose as men that I would change, but I'm relatively pleased with how little I disagree with myself in this chapter. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own c…
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In chapter 13 of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com, I transition from talking about sex and emotional health the larger purpose for our existence. Some things I'd say differently have to do with our stereotypes about gender roles. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality fo…
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This chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com deals with lies that trip us up after we have experienced a certain level of freedom. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality for 70% off!! Just visit this link: https://amzn.to/392AxTX. Check out the previous episodes by v…
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This chapter of https://www.TheLiveFreeBook.com helps you know what to do with the pain caused by wounding experiences, and I feel pretty good about it even today. Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality for 70% off!! Just visit this link: https://amzn.to/392AxTX. Check …
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#058 - What "All Things Work Together for Good" Really Means
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I make a statement in this chapter of www.TheLiveFreeBook.com that completely miscommunicates what I intended to say! Remember -- BLACK FRIDAY DEAL ANNOUNCEMENT -- You can order your own copy of Live Free: Making Sense of Male Sexuality for 70% off!! Just visit this link: https://amzn.to/392AxTX. Check out the previous episodes by visiting this lin…
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This is the most important chapter in all of www.TheLiveFreeBook.com. But do I accurately reflect Romans? Watch the episode to find out! Check out the previous episodes by visiting this link. If you would like to follow along with this review and make sure that you don't miss any of it, be sure to join the book review group, here. Also -- BLACK FRI…
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#056 - Mud Pies in a Slum, or a Holiday at the Beach?
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What if your problem with sexual sin isn't the result of having TOO MUCH desire, but too little? In this review of www.TheLiveFreeBook.com we look at how and why we settle for lessers forms of sexual pleasure. Check out the previous episodes by visiting this link. If you would like to follow along with this review and make sure that you don't miss …
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#055 - Finding Freedom from Unwanted Sexual Behaviors (w/ Arthur Nisly)
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I'm excited to have my uncle-in-law, friend, and colleague on the podcast to discuss his work with Hope Journey Guide in mentoring men who struggle with unwanted sexual behaviors. More recently, he has started training others who want to help mentor those struggling. If you find yourself committing sexual behaviors you don't want to do, or if you d…
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