Crossmap Podcast

Have you ever been so frustrated with life that you just wanted to throw everything away and start fresh?  It sounds great until you start considering all the ramifications involved.   Things like:   - Quitting your job - Selling the house and moving to a new location - Saying goodbye to friends and family (at least for a little while) - Dropping out of church, school, and various other civic orga...

The allure of pornography can be quite intoxicating. And why not? It’s always available and easy to hide. Nobody else has to know about it.   Pornography is one of the few places in life where you are in complete control of your sexuality. Quite frankly, pornography never says no. You can be vulnerable, take emotional risks, and explore whatever you want to with no fear of judgment.   What you hav...

Prayer, otherwise known as communication with God, is a way for anyone to ask for help, plead for forgiveness, or even offer praises to the Almighty. It can be a time to confess our sins and enter into a more intimate relationship with our creator.  Prayer can also have a profound physiological effect on us, such as lowering blood pressure and heart rate and even assist in regulating our breathing...

There have been so many stories over the years about someone defying the odds to achieve some level of greatness in their lifetime. So many that experts have dug quite deeply in a pursuit to find the common threads that define why someone is driven to seek high-performance and uncommon results. While the research is sometimes conflicting, all can agree that a person who defies the odds has develop...

We have all heard the old phrase that laughter is the best medicine. While it may seem hard to believe that laughter contains medicinal properties, scientific research reveals that it can actually boost your immune system, lower blood pressure, and trigger the release of endorphins. But what is laughter really? Simply said, it is a gift. Laughter can recharge your focus, give you a much needed bre...

A lighthouse offers a promise of safety, warning travelers of unforeseen danger and guiding them along their journey. It symbolizes hope and salvation. Likewise, God, who is the light of the world, is our refuge, leading and beckoning us to safety during the storms of life.   This turbulence we endure is often a byproduct of our choices, beliefs, and the world around us. But when God’s truth and p...

The definition of an unsung hero is one who does great deeds but receives little or no recognition for them.   In the sports arena, it is a player that no one is expecting to score the winning touchdown, make the winning shot, or lead the team to victory.   In the arts and entertainment world, an unsung hero is someone who makes all the necessary arrangements to ensure that a concert or theatrical...

Here are some simple yet probing questions that have far reaching, sometimes complicated answers. You know the type, the ones where you respond with, “That would take all afternoon to answer that one!" Here goes: Are you feeling stuck? Do you want more out of life? Do you sometimes feel lost, not in a geographic sense, but in an emotional, sometimes psychologically damaging way? Perhaps you are ju...

Have you ever considered what it would be like to be part of a global movement of people living their lives God’s way, one that inspires, transforms, and equips believers to do all that God has called them to do? It sounds quite refreshing and inspiring when you think about it. But putting it into practice can be quite a different experience than what you read in a glossy brochure. Internationally...

This is a story that you just can’t make up. It is a tale that will make you wince, even cringe at times, but ultimately you are drawn to the powerful lessons found through healing, forgiveness, and redemption. Author Carrie Sheffield has led a very turbulent  life but fortunately she has emerged a stronger and grateful person due to her experiences.  Sheffield grew up the fifth of eight children...

Sometimes chasing a dream doesn’t always work out. Despite our best efforts and passionate zeal for what we are chasing, nothing seems to make sense. You have the talent, the perseverance, and the requisite hours of preparation, but you are hitting nothing but walls made of very hard surfaces.  Perhaps you are chasing this dream for all the wrong reasons. For example, popular contemporary Christia...

For some reason, some people just seem to lead extraordinary lives. That doesn’t always mean that life will be easy. In fact, sometimes what some people see as an extraordinary life is quite the opposite. Triumph juxtaposed against tragedy. Headlines leading to heartbreak.   Gloria Gaynor is a music icon and disco legend who has inspired millions for decades with three simple words: “I will surviv...

David from the Old Testament was a lot of things to a lot of people. In addition to being the second ruler of Israel and one of the greatest kings in history, he was a legendary poet, harpist, and hymn writer. Evidence of his talent is the fact that 73 of the Bible’s 150 Psalms are credited to the pen of David.   But when people think of one of Scripture's most pivotal figures, most remember him f...

For so many people, politics are the lifeblood and fabric of our nation. The ability to join in public discourse about the issues of the day is an inherent right and privilege for citizens of this great nation. Personal fulfillment and sheer delight can often be found through non-stop news coverage, informative social media posts, and even discussions around the dinner table.   But what about thos...

Resilience and love are two emotions that can fuel a successful relationship. One cannot exist without the other. Love may be patient and kind but without resilience many marriages have faltered.    Lack of patience with the other, inability to find common ground on a key issue, or just plain old stubbornness and selfishness, have wrecked even the most well-intentioned couples in their pursuit of...

We can never know about the days to come But we think about them anyway And I wonder if I'm really with you now Or just chasin' after some finer day   From the song “Anticipation” by Carly Simon   How many times have you felt like you are in a holding tank, just waiting for some better part of your life to arrive? The days of future success and happiness seem to be mired in the humdrum heartache t...

A prominent lyric from well-worn Christmas crooner Andy Williams reveals, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.”    What he didn’t mention is that it’s also the busiest, most stressful, and expensive time we experience as the calendar year comes to a close. For all the baubles and beads designed to make our world just a little bit brighter, it is so easy to get lost in a shuffle of school Chr...

Sometimes doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result can turn into some very bad habits. So many times we have written off these lifelong battles as unwinnable or unattainable. What has become a destructive behavior can never be altered. But for as much as we think these thoughts will never lead us anywhere, we must never settle for giving up or accepting less than...

John Cooper has spent the last 25 plus years touring the world as the lead singer of the 17-time platinum selling rock band Skillet. During that time, fans have been treated to a variety of hard-hitting, nail-biting songs, with each one delivering a foundational truth pointing to God’s love. While their live shows consistently deliver hair-raising, pyrotechnic-fueled entertainment, the band consis...

There have been so many wonderful musicals over the years that it’s hard to pinpoint just one as the gold standard. From “The Sound of Music” to “Fiddler on the Roof” to “Grease”, fans of the genre have been treated to the very best in song, dance, and the twinkling of an eye.   The aforementioned musicals of yesteryear have been replaced more recently with equally dazzling fare including a remake...

Just a few days ago, 3,500 fans converged from all over the world to attend the first ever Chosen Con, a one day celebration of all things from the hit streaming series, ‘The Chosen’.  Beyond the opportunity to mingle with their favorite cast members, fans of the show were the first to hear about plans for the quickly approaching Season 4.  Here is what you need to know: For the first time ever, t...

‘Miracle' is a term that sadly gets thrown around in trivial ways that ultimately dilutes the deep manifestations of the word. How many times have you been watching a sporting event where you hear a play-by-play announcer innocuously say, “Well, this team really needs a miracle right now if they want to have any chance of winning." It seems like an appropriate thing to say until you realize that t...

Hope is something we all say we have but in practice there doesn’t always seem to be evidence to support that. We say we have hope for the future, that everything will work out in our favor. But how many times have things not worked out the way we wanted? Do we turn our backs on the one we rely on for all good things? Of course not. As long as there is a God above there is always hope even when th...

Just what is a man? What is a woman? How do you go about changing gender? Can you define what each letter in LGBTQ stands for? If we are all being honest, even the most devoted person of faith can get caught up in a deluge of questions swirling around gender ideology, sexual orientation, and what it means to ‘choose your pronouns’. Our guest today, Joel Berry, has co-written a book that takes a cl...

It has often been said that everyone has a story to tell. Whether it is a life filled with adventure, an event that is life-changing, or mundane day to day activities spread out over decades, there always seems to be something valuable and worthwhile to share with others.   Most people know Phil Robertson as the Duck Commander. As the patriarch of the highly entertaining reality television showDuc...