The quiet moments matter most when life won’t slow down. We gather around the tree with scripture from Isaiah 9 and Matthew 1 to center on Emmanuel—God with us—and then get real about Christmas in military life: deployments, duty, distance, and the tug-of-war between family expectations and a soul that longs for rest. You’ll hear the stories that shaped us: the frantic trip with a newborn during a wartime tour, the ceramic angel that shattered and became a turning point, and the surprising peace we found when we stopped chasing “home” and started guarding a holy, simple Christmas right where we live.

We also share small, sticky traditions that carry big meaning: reading Luke 2 before gifts, slow mornings with cocoa, and nighttime drives to see lights that preach hope into dark streets. Hospitality becomes a mission as we open our door to Marines and young families who can’t travel, keeping the morning for our nucleus and the afternoon for anyone who needs a table. Along the way we name the roots beneath holiday stress—loneliness, expectations, fantasy—and offer a counterpractice that works in any zip code: be here now. Presence over perfection. Gratitude over comparison. Real life over curated feeds.

If duty has you standing post or separated by oceans, this conversation offers both comfort and a plan. Carve small pockets of quiet into a packed schedule. Trade obligation travel for intentional time, even if it’s just an hour behind a closed door to read, pray, and breathe. And if you’re catching up, revisit our recent episodes on loneliness and dating your spouse; they thread directly into a healthier, happier holiday. Subscribe, share this with a military friend who needs encouragement, and leave a review to help others find the show. What expectation will you release to make room for presence this Christmas?

SHOW NOTES:

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We would LOVE to hear your thoughts and take questions you would like us to answer about on future episodes of the podcast.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, from our families to yours!

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Stop treating your marriage like a shared calendar and start treating it like a love story you’re still writing. We dive into what it really means to date your spouse—how to define a “good date” together, set clear expectations, and build rituals that bring back pursuit, play, and intimacy without adding pressure. From military separations to the grind of parenting, we unpack why logistics aren’t connection and how to carve out time for presence, laughter, and deeper conversation.

We get practical about planning: put the date on the calendar first, agree on the vibe, and protect it from turning into a work meeting. You’ll hear simple prompts that change the tone fast—questions like “What’s been on your mind?” and “How can I love you better?”—and why those only build trust when paired with action. We talk phones-down meals, the power of eye contact, and how small acts of follow-through create safety that invites honesty. If money or childcare is tight, we share at-home date ideas that still feel special: early bedtime for the kids, candlelight steak for two, a saved movie, and time to flirt without interruptions.

Joy matters too. Laughter is not a luxury; it’s glue. Try playful traditions like an alphabet restaurant tour, a beach walk, or a game night that lets you be silly. Physical affection belongs on the list—move beyond perfunctory kisses and bring back warmth and excitement. And if you’ve slipped into the “roommates” rut, use this as your pivot point. Pick one night, one simple plan, and one brave question. Keep them how you caught them: pursue, plan, and play. If this resonated, subscribe, share with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a review with your favorite date idea—we’ll try a few on our next night out.

SHOW NOTES:

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RESOURCES FROM TODAYS EPISODE

1. Date Your Wife: get it here--- Amazon.com: Date Your Wife (Audible Audio Edition): Justin Buzzard, Lyle Blaker, One Audiobooks: Audible Books & Originals

2. Strengthening Your Marriage: get it here--- Amazon.com: Strengthening Your Marriage (Audible Audio Edition): Wayne A. Mack, Jim Denison, christianaudio.com: Books

3. For our friends in the Southeast, The Billy Graham Retreat center does FREE Military Marriage Retreats, you just have to get yourself there. Check the dates out here--- Events - Billy Graham Training Center at the Cove

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The holidays can be beautiful and brutal at the same time, especially when you’re stringing lights while your spouse sleeps in another time zone. We open up about years of missed anniversaries, a harrowing IED incident right before a birth, and the quiet ache that creeps into December—and we share the practices that turned survival mode into steady joy.

Grounded in Philippians 4:4–8, we unpack why rejoicing isn’t denial; it’s a deliberate habit that pushes back anxiety through prayer, gratitude, and disciplined attention to what is true and lovely. We talk about the difference between numbing with busyness and actively cultivating peace, along with the simple rituals that help: reading an Advent plan together through an app, using email threads with clear subjects to keep multiple conversations moving, and leaning on the FORD framework—Family, Occupation, Recreation, Dreams—to ask better questions when mission details are off-limits. If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s okay to enjoy Christmas without your spouse, we make the case for permission and purpose: service exists so that families at home can actually live the freedom being defended.

Community is a lifeline here. When travel isn’t possible, we show how a local church and small gatherings can replace isolating nights with meaningful connection. For parents, we offer ways to keep the deployed partner present in kids’ memories through traditions, stories, photos, and care packages. And we share how trials can mature love and make reunions sweeter than any gift under the tree. Separation hurts, but it can also deepen gratitude, strengthen faith, and reframe what really matters.

If this resonates, share it with a friend who needs hope, follow the show, and leave a review so more military families can find these conversations. Subscribe for new episodes and tell us what topics you want us to tackle next.

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The season is loud, but the message is simple: a Savior has come. We gather with Brian and Kelly O’Day and Joshua and Brittany Brown to explore how Advent can turn everyday December moments into warm, natural conversations about Jesus—without pressure, scripts, or culture-war skirmishes. Instead of scolding the noise, we learn to listen for the signal: carols with gospel-rich lyrics, candles and lights that point to John 1, a manger on a lawn, and even a calendar counting years from the birth of Christ.

We ground everything in Scripture. Luke 2’s songs declare a clear claim—Messiah and Lord—while Matthew 1 names Him Emmanuel, God with us. John’s prologue calls Jesus the true Light who shines in the darkness. Then Romans 10 asks the question that frames the month: how will they believe if they do not hear? From there we move into practice. We share simple “pebble in the shoe” questions to spark reflection, show how Hark the Herald Angels Sing or O Holy Night can open doors, and walk through ways to disciple kids with traditions like nighttime light drives that connect beauty to truth.

Hurry is the enemy of love, so we get tactical about slowing down: shop early if you can, prune the calendar, and let “no, thank you” be a complete sentence. That margin makes room for people—inviting neighbors to a candlelight service, volunteering at local shelters, or sharing cocoa after church. Many who avoid church year-round will come at Christmas, and familiar carols can soften guarded hearts. We model a kind, curious tone that wins trust, not arguments, bridging from cultural Christmas to the true joy of Christ’s incarnation.

If you’re looking for clear steps, better questions, and a calmer spirit to carry real hope into your circles, this conversation is your map. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs peace this month, and leave a review to help others find the show. Which tradition will you turn into a gospel bridge this year?

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Gratitude is simple to say and hard to live, especially when the calendar says “celebrate” and your reality says “not yet.” We open up about what a thankful life looks like in real time—during deployments, on duty during the holiday, or when the barracks feel empty—and why Scripture calls thanksgiving God’s will for us, not a seasonal slogan.

We unpack the quiet link between contentment and gratitude and how breaking the grumble loop can change a unit, a home, and a heart. John the Baptist’s call to soldiers to be content still hits home. So does Paul’s charge to give thanks in all circumstances. With stories from military life, we connect thanksgiving to endurance: when stress stacks up and comfort runs thin, gratitude becomes a steadying force that keeps perspective clear. We offer practical tools you can use today—morning and evening thankfulness practices, extending your timeline to spot God’s faithfulness, and simple questions that shift a conversation from complaint to hope.

Scripture anchors the journey. Lamentations 3 teaches us to call past mercies to mind; Psalm 23 reminds us that God is with us in the valley and the green pastures; the Great Commission assures us of Christ’s presence always. We draw a helpful line between honest lament and grumbling, and we talk about how to help someone reach the “but God” moment—with friendship, Scripture, and, when needed, biblical counseling. Finally, we turn gratitude outward: Who are we thanking, and for what? That question turns a holiday mood into a living faith and opens gentle doors for gospel conversations.

If this encouraged you, share it with a friend in the military community, subscribe for more, and leave a quick review telling us one thing you’re thankful for today. Your words might be the lift someone else needs.

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The holidays can form a family or fracture one. In this episode Brian and Kelly O’Day and Joshua and Brittany Brown unpack how to build Christ-centered traditions that actually move with you—through military life, new cities, and shifting seasons—without losing the heart of the story.

We start with Deuteronomy 6 and treat traditions as discipling tools: daily, ordinary moments that teach love for God while you sit, walk, and rise. You’ll hear practical rhythms like an Advent “doors” countdown with Scripture on December 1, simple generosity challenges (yes, even paying for a stranger’s gas), and why a candle at dinner paired with a short reading can reset a rushed day. We dig into the real tension of merging two upbringings, what to keep, what to release, and how to create new rituals that fit your values now.

Hospitality takes center stage as we draw a line between entertaining and welcoming. Forget perfection; embrace participation. Potlucks, plastic plates, and shared cleanup invite neighbors, single service members, and friends who can’t travel into a living tradition. We also make the case for experiences over more stuff: use your budget for memory-making—local parades, light displays, concerts, or a quiet drive with carols—and capture the car-ride conversations that kids remember for years.

If devotionals help you focus, we mention Advent resources from She Reads Truth, He Reads Truth, John Piper, Nancy Guthrie, and Paul Tripp; if not, reading Luke 2 and the Gospels works beautifully. The thread tying it all together is simple: choose practices that are portable, purposeful, and centered on Jesus. Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s far from home, and tell us one tradition you’ll start or revive this year. Your next tradition can begin tonight.

SHOW NOTES:

She Reads Truth: Advent 2025 | Women's Daily Bible Reading Plan – She Reads Truth

He Reads Truth: Advent 2025 | Men's Bible Reading Plan (DIGITAL) – She Reads Truth

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Loneliness can feel loud, even when life is busy and rooms are full. We go straight at that ache, opening with the Scriptures that have steadied us—Psalms that promise God’s nearness and Ecclesiastes 4’s reminder that two are better than one—and then we get practical about how to move from isolation into real community. Along the way, we share unpolished stories: letters that bridged the gap at Officer Candidate School, a knock on a dorm door with soup when it mattered most, and the unique weight of military life when deployments, new towns, and Sunday mornings collide.

We talk about why “lone wolf” living fails, how social media counterfeits connection, and what embodied community actually looks like in a healthy local church. You’ll hear simple, repeatable steps for the hardest hours of the day: praying honestly out loud, naming what’s true to a trusted friend in one sentence, and reserving a small joy for the time you typically feel most alone. For spouses who’ve moved a dozen times and feel crusty from constant goodbyes, we offer a gentle push from Galatians 6:9—don’t grow weary in doing good—and show how sowing friendliness, hospitality, and honesty yields a harvest in due season. Service members will find a challenge, too: the military never sends you outside the wire alone; stop carrying invisible battles by yourself.

If you’re navigating deployments, parenting solo on Sundays, or just tired of the quiet after bedtime, this conversation offers both comfort and a plan. We point you to concrete resources—the Mighty Oaks Legacy Programs, Scripture to memorize when the night stretches on, and next steps to find a church family that actually knows your name. Press play, then take one small step: text someone to sit with you this weekend. If this helps, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review so others can find the conversation.

SHOW NOTES:

1. The Bible- Read the Word, the Psalms, James 1, Proverbs 3:5-9, and the entirety of Scripture, know Jesus more and you will see how you are loved, cared for and NEVER alone!

2. God Does His Best Work with Empty: Guthrie, Nancy: 9781496439697: Amazon.com: Books

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Ever feel like you’re stepping into a new day without your gear? We walk through the simple, durable habits that actually hold under pressure—Bible reading that respects context and genre, and prayer that is honest, specific, and connected to people you love. The conversation starts with the “why”: Scripture is God-breathed and equips you for every good work. From there, we get practical about the “how”—building a time and place you can defend, choosing a paper Bible to cut noise, reading whole books instead of grazing on verses, and using a journal to capture thanksgiving, observations, and intercession without turning it into performance.

We share rhythms that flex with real life: short weekday time anchored in one chapter and a brief prayer, then a longer block on weekends; a “holy hour” goal that grows desire over time; and a simple prayer calendar that assigns real names to the days of the month. Reaching out as you pray becomes its own ministry, often arriving with uncanny timing and opening gentle conversations about faith. For beginners, we suggest starting in the New Testament to meet Jesus in the Gospels and follow the church through Acts before circling back to the Old Testament with clearer eyes for its patterns, prophecies, and promises. For those who struggle to read, we normalize learning styles, note which books work well on audio, and offer a steady prayer from Psalm 119: “Give me understanding.”

Threaded through is a sober reminder from Ephesians 6: you are in a spiritual battle, and the armor of God is not metaphoric comfort—it is a daily kit. The sword of the Spirit is the Word; prayer is your lifeline; consistency is the quiet force that compounds over months and years into wisdom, stability, and courage. If you’ve felt scattered, start small: pick a time, pick a place, pick a book, and read one chapter today. Subscribe for more practical, faith-forward conversations, share this with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a review to help others find the show.

SHOW NOTES:

1. Amazon.com: The Power of a Praying Wife (Audible Audio Edition): Stormie Omartian, Stormie Omartian, Dreamscape Media, LLC: Books

2. Amazon.com: Praying the Bible (Audible Audio Edition): Donald S. Whitney, Donald S. Whitney, christianaudio.com: Audible Books & Originals

3. Prayer Calendar. Simply write a

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