Christmas Eve can be packed with noise, notifications, and hurry. In this episode, learn simple ways to put your phone aside, linger in Luke 2, and let your heart truly receive Jesus.

Have you ever reached Christmas Eve feeling busy and connected to everything on your phone, but not really present with Jesus or the people in your living room?

Between last‑minute tasks, group texts, photos to capture, and constant notifications, it’s easy to spend the evening reacting instead of worshiping. You end the night tired and distracted, realizing you rushed through a night that was meant to help you slow down and remember “God with us.”

In this episode, you’ll hear how Andy Crouch’s family chose to become “tech‑wise,” especially on nights that matter, like Christmas Eve, by powering down devices, reading Luke 2, praying, and simply being together. You’ll see how small, intentional choices, like putting the phone out of reach and giving Jesus a few unhurried minutes, can help you step off the treadmill of hurry so your heart can truly receive Christ this Christmas.

BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING, YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why hurry and constant screens quietly dull your awareness of God’s presence, especially on holy nights like Christmas Eve
• How following Mary’s example in Luke 2 helps you “keep these things in your heart” instead of just rushing past them
• Simple, “tech‑wise” practices you can use tonight to slow your heart, be present with loved ones, and make real room for Jesus
• Slow your pace this Christmas Eve so you don’t just remember that Jesus came—you actually receive Him.

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Still believe in God but feel numb, distant, and spiritually dry? In this episode, see how God meets you in the desert places of your soul and gently awakens your desire for His presence again.

Have you ever gone through a season where you keep showing up to church, maybe even reading your Bible and praying, but inside you feel…nothing?

You still believe. You haven’t walked away. But your soul feels flat. Your prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling. Worship songs don’t move you like they used to. You look back on times when you felt close to God and quietly wonder, “What’s wrong with me now?”

In this episode, Bart tells the story of C.S. Lewis after the death of his wife. The man who had written so beautifully about faith found himself sitting alone in a quiet house, feeling like God had “slammed the door” in his face and double-bolted it. He still believed, but he felt numb and abandoned. His soul was dry, and the God he’d written about seemed a million miles away. Instead of pretending he was okay or walking away from God, Lewis chose a different path.

Through his journal (which later became A Grief Observed) and the words of Psalm 63:1, you’ll see that spiritual dryness is not a sign that your faith is broken; it can be the place where God does some of His deepest work.

Psalm 63:1 (NLT) says:

“O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you.

My soul thirsts for you;

my whole body longs for you

in this parched and weary land

where there is no water.”

David wrote those words in the wilderness, not in a peaceful prayer retreat. He knew what it felt like to be in a “parched and weary land”, outside and inside. Instead of hiding it, he brought his thirst, his dryness, and his longing straight to God.

Bart unpacks how C.S. Lewis did something similar. In A Grief Observed, Lewis poured out raw questions, anger, confusion, and silence to God over and over again. He didn’t clean it up. He didn’t fake closeness he didn’t feel. But as time passed, the tone of his writing slowly shifted—from sharp pain to a humbler, quieter trust. He never got all the answers he wanted, but he discovered that even when God felt absent, God was still holding him.

Lewis moved from simply writing about thirst to living Psalm 63:1: “my soul thirsts for you…in this parched and weary land.” His story reminds us that dryness doesn’t mean the end of faith. It can be the beginning of a more honest, deeper relationship with God.

If your soul feels dry right now, this episode will remind you that:

You are not the first believer to feel far from God.

Thirst is not failure; it’s evidence that your heart is still alive.

You don’t have to fix your dryness before you come to God; you come to Him in your dryness.

Honest, even messy prayer is often how God slowly awakens your desire for Him again.

You’ll be encouraged to stop pretending you’re “fine,” and instead begin talking to God from where you really are: tired, numb, confused, or just flat. And you’ll see that those simple, honest prayers can become the doorway to renewed desire and a softer, more responsive heart.

Main Scripture:

Psalm 63:1 (NLT) –

“O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you.

My soul thirsts for you;

my whole body longs for you

in this parched and weary land

where there is no water.”

By the end of this episode, you’ll be reminded:

• That dry seasons are a normal part of the Christian life, not proof that God has left you.
• That God can handle your honest questions, disappointment, and numbness.
• That continuing to seek God, even when you don’t feel Him, is itself an act of faith.
• That spiritual drought can become the very place where God gently rekindles your hunger for...

Feeling the financial squeeze and wondering how it’s all going to work out? In this episode, discover how God’s character as Provider doesn’t change, even when your numbers don’t add up, and every spreadsheet says, “This won’t work.”

Have you ever sat at the kitchen table with a stack of bills, a sinking feeling in your stomach, and a calculator that refuses to land on a peaceful number?

The paycheck comes in and goes right back out. Groceries cost more. Rent or the mortgage feels heavier. A surprise bill shows up in the mailbox, and suddenly your chest feels tight. Maybe you’ve tried to be faithful, tithing, giving when you can, working hard, cutting back, and still, the numbers don’t make sense. You find yourself asking, “Lord, are You really going to provide for us?”

In this episode, Bart shares the story of David Green, the founder of Hobby Lobby, who started his small family business in Oklahoma with a $600 loan. For a while, things grew. But then came high interest rates, slow sales, and mounting bills. The company found itself on the edge of collapse. Advisers told David to cut back on giving and do whatever it took to protect the bottom line. His family had always tithed and tried to honor God, but now the math didn’t work. In that moment, he had to answer a hard question: will we still trust God as Provider when every spreadsheet is shouting, “You can’t afford this”?

Through this story and the promise of Philippians 4:19, you’ll be reminded that God’s ability to provide for you is not tied to the strength of the economy, the size of your paycheck, or the neatness of your budget. It’s rooted in who He is.

Philippians 4:19 (NLT) says:

“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.”

Paul wrote those words to believers who had been generous to him, even when they didn’t have much. He wasn’t handing them a slogan; he was anchoring them in God’s character. “This same God”, the One who had sustained Paul through prison, hunger, hardship, and uncertainty, “will supply all your needs.”

That doesn’t mean God always makes the math comfortable or that if you give, you’ll suddenly get rich. It does mean that He sees what you’re facing. He knows what you truly need. And He has promised to meet those needs out of His “glorious riches” in Christ, not out of your limited resources.

Bart talks about how, in the middle of intense financial pressure, David and his family chose not to pull back on generosity or abandon their convictions. Instead, they kept honoring God, caring well for employees, and trusting Him with the outcome. The turnaround wasn’t instant, but over time, sales recovered, debts were paid, and Hobby Lobby grew from a garage start-up into a nationwide chain. Looking back, David Green says the lesson isn’t “give and you’ll get rich,” but that God’s character as Provider doesn’t change when cash flow is tight. When the numbers didn’t add up, he leaned on Philippians 4:19.

You may not be running a national company, but you might be staring at your own “spreadsheet” today, a bank account that feels too small, bills that feel too big, and a heart caught between fear and faith. Maybe you’re tempted to pull back on everything that feels spiritual or generous, to go into survival mode and rely only on what you can see.

This episode will encourage you to bring your real numbers and your real fears to God. You’ll be reminded that trusting Him as Provider doesn’t mean ignoring wisdom or pretending money doesn’t matter. It means doing what you can, working, planning, cutting where you need to, and then placing the weight of your confidence not on your calculations, but on His character.

Main Scripture:

Philippians 4:19 (NLT) –

“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which...