Deepen your friendship with God through informative conversation and personal spiritual disciplines. Each episode focuses on a different topic and how we can approach it from a spiritual growth perspective. Whether it's talking about relationships, the Bible, prayer, cultural issues, anxiety, or anything else related to your life, this podcast looks at how we can live as disciples of Jesus. Episodes feature conversations with authors, professors, or pastors.  

Brought to you by Saddleback Church. Hosted by Jason Wieland.

“If we have eyes to see, we uncover joy almost everywhere. Like someone searching for sand crabs on the coastline, we may not find her under every rock. But we also don’t need to look too hard before we uncover her.” This is a quote from the new book, Longing for Joy. There are many misconceptions about joy. There are many people who may struggle with joylessness because of anxiety, depression, or other factors. But there is also an availability of joy, true deep joy, to be found in Christ and his creation. This episode today is one of those moments where I think God is up to something. I’ve seen, heard, and read a lot about joy as of late. When I hear something pop up in a lot of conversations, that’s usually a sign to me that God is wanting to do a work in us related to this topic - and it was an added nudge from God when I saw the new book, Longing for Joy, by Alastair Sterne, which quickly turned into one of my favorite books of the year. I’m joined today by Alastair to talk about the reality of longing, joy found in creation and each other, practices that help cultivate joy, and much more. Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).Resources Related to This Episode: Longing For Joy - https://www.amazon.com/Longing-Joy-Invitation-Goodness-Beauty/dp/151400898XRelated Doable Discipleship Episodes:  The Burden and Gift of Living - https://youtu.be/VP6kHyBUpP4 Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA Living Out of Overflow - https://youtu.be/aBKXbHf0X0s Music, Story, and Experience with Luke Smallbone of For King & Country - https://youtu.be/6I-ayiHn7Tw Living with Hope in the Midst of Struggle - https://youtu.be/99Nki49V0fI

Doable Discipleship

Longing for Joy with Alastair Sterne

A third time the Lord called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. 1 Samuel 3:8-111 Samuel, the 9th book of the Old Testament, is without a doubt one of my favorite books of the Bible. Continuing the narrative of God’s people, Israel, we transition from the time of the Judges into a new season – but, as is with the case of most of Israel’s history, all was not to go so easily. 1 Samuel contains a lot of well-known stories: the calling of Samuel, the anointing of Saul, the anointing of David, David and Goliath, and so on, but it’s what we learn about God and about ourselves through this book that make it so fascinating. To help us navigate 1 Samuel is Dr. David Jensen, Professor of Theology at Austin Seminary and author of a theological commentary on 1 & 2 Samuel. Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).Resources Related to This Episode: https://www.amazon.com/Samuel-Theological-Commentary-Bible-Belief/dp/0664232493Related Doable Discipleship Episodes:  Navigating the Bible: Rute - https://youtu.be/YaH-t-ZzTaM Navigating the Bible: Judges - https://youtu.be/qNGcOf2o0NU Navigating the Bible: Joshua - https://youtu.be/hF28aThBtFs Navigating the Bible: Deuteronomy - https://youtu.be/HzmNgPOM4zU Navigating the Bible: Numbers - https://youtu.be/H1HO6V9HDxs Navigating the Bible: Leviticus - https://youtu.be/08RhDCXYex4 Navigating the Bible: Exodus - https://youtu.be/NB9UTpS1F3M Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA Inspiring Dreams by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/ Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Navigating the Bible: 1 Samuel

I have a very vivid memory of a specific church service about 10 years ago. My wife and I go into the worship center, find seats in our usual section, but the stage looks different. There are instruments I’ve never seen on our stage, and in a configuration that I didn’t recognize. When the service starts, a group of people come out onto the stage in long coats, suspenders, moppish hair, and then the drum starts. The rap of the single snare drum (make sound) that I hadn’t heard in that way before but have come to be very familiar with now. That service sticks out so much in my mind because that’s the kind of effect For King & Country have. The experience was so exciting, so fresh, and the music itself had a similar effect. Since then, For King & Country have become one of the biggest names in Christian music as four-time Grammy winners with hit songs such as Crave, The Proof of Your Love, Fix Your Eyes, Priceless, Joy, and so many more. But they’ve also now ventured into other forms of storytelling, with movies they’ve been involved in like Unsung Hero and the new theatrical release of their Christmas Concert, Drummer Boy Live. Today's guest is Luke Smallbone, half of the duo known as For King & Country along with his brother Joel. In this conversation host Jason Wieland talks with Luke about how he sees Jesus show up in the songwriting process, the power of storytelling, how being a parent changes perspective, the special effect experiences have on us, and much more. Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).Resources Related to This Episode: For King & Country website - https://www.forkingandcountry.com/ Drummer Boy Live Movie Website - https://www.fathomevents.com/events/for-king-country-a-drummer-boy-christmas-live/Related Doable Discipleship Episodes:  Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA Living Out of Overflow - https://youtu.be/aBKXbHf0X0s What it Looks Like to Give God All My Worship - https://youtu.be/E33yKXp1E9w Living with Hope in the Midst of Struggle - https://youtu.be/99Nki49V0fI

Music, Story, and Experience with Luke Smallbone of For King & Country

Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go back to your mothers’ homes. And may the Lord reward you for your kindness to your husbands and to me." But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.” Ruth 1:8, 16. The Book of Ruth, the 8th book in the Old Testament, is surely one that stands apart from everything we’ve read so far in the Bible. We’ve been reading epic stories of nations, but Ruth is a little shining jewel that focuses in on one little family – really just something that happened in the lives of 3 connected individuals. While it’s a short book, only 4 chapters, it is not one to be ignored or forgotten. We learn so much about God in how he works in the lives of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz – and yet as with all Scripture there is always still much more goodness to reap. To help us navigate the book of Ruth is Dr. Eric Redmond, Professor of Bible and Executive Director of the Moody Theological Seminary Center for Compelling Biblical Preaching, and author of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary on Ruth. Doable Discipleship is a Saddleback Church podcast produced and hosted by Jason Wieland. It premiered in 2017 and now offers more than 400 episodes. Episodes release every Tuesday on your favorite podcast app and on the Saddleback Church YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/saddleback).Resources Related to This Episode: https://www.amazon.com/Exalting-Jesus-Judges-Christ-Centered-Exposition/dp/1462797210Related Doable Discipleship Episodes:  Navigating the Bible: Judges - https://youtu.be/qNGcOf2o0NU Navigating the Bible: Joshua - https://youtu.be/hF28aThBtFs Navigating the Bible: Deuteronomy - https://youtu.be/HzmNgPOM4zU Navigating the Bible: Numbers - https://youtu.be/H1HO6V9HDxs Navigating the Bible: Leviticus - https://youtu.be/08RhDCXYex4 Navigating the Bible: Exodus - https://youtu.be/NB9UTpS1F3M Navigating the Bible: Genesis - https://youtu.be/ddhjMfOoasA Inspiring Dreams by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/ Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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