Death to Life podcast

We talk with Julia Walda about the moment she realized she loved Jesus but did not actually understand the gospel well enough to live free. She shares how righteousness, renewing the mind, and rejecting lies reshaped her fight with lust, anxiety, condemnation, and self-hatred. • her shift from casual posting to intentional gospel teaching on social media • why she values local church authority ove...

We speak a steady chain of Scripture-based declarations that ground our identity in Christ as a new creation, fully forgiven, and deeply loved. We move from reconciliation and righteousness into Spirit-led living, renewed thinking, and confident authority that flows from Jesus and not from self-effort. • new creation identity and union with Christ • reconciliation through Jesus and righteousness b...

We catch up with Addison Collingsworth on family, faith, and the shift from studying healing to living with authority in Christ. We keep coming back to one idea: relationship with God makes spiritual power simple, while formulas make it weird and fragile. • Addison’s life update, four kids, flood, rebuild, and seeing God provide • Why his newsletter shifted toward healing and authority in Christ •...

We talk with Josh Rittenbach about growing up with a transactional view of God and how shame fed addiction, anger, and collapse in his marriage. We also share the moment the gospel finally felt real and how forgiveness, identity in Christ, and the secret place changed the way Josh lives and fathers his girls. • growing up Adventist in small-town North Dakota and learning to perform for approval •...

We talk with Aaron Dickerson about growing up with a fear-based view of God, building his identity on performance, and how stress eventually broke through in severe health crises. We share how forgiveness and hearing “You are loved” reshaped Aaron’s view of God and opened a new life of trust, freedom, and discernment • growing up around Revelation seminars and a distant picture of God • building a...

We trace Jonathan Leonardo’s journey from Adventist upbringing and party-driven identity to a sudden, undeniable encounter with the gospel that makes “God loves me” real. Along the way, we name how theology can mask bondage, how fear of being hurt shapes relationships, and how the Holy Spirit turns sonship into actual freedom. • growing up between the Dominican Republic, New York, and Massachusett...

We challenge the idea that calling ourselves a porn addict is harmless, and we explain how that label can reinforce the very behavior we want to quit. We connect brain science, shame cycles, and Scripture to show how renewing our minds can turn freedom from porn into a new normal. • why coaching helps when good advice does not stick • how identity language shapes expectations and behavior • placeb...

We sit down with Brenda Klein as she traces how a life shaped by perfectionism, approval seeking, and quiet shame starts to change when she learns to anchor her identity in Christ. Along the way, she shares answered prayers, hard lessons in marriage and community, and the slow freedom of believing God’s love is steady. • growing up with faith that can feel like rules and appearances • learning how...

We sit down with Ron Weller for a brutally honest story of growing up with heavy shame, chasing a performance-based faith, and nearly losing his marriage through repeated unfaithfulness. We talk about what finally changed when he saw God’s love clearly, found real community, and learned how freedom in Christ reshapes desire and daily choices. • growing up Adventist with sensitivity, poverty and hi...

We sit down with Nana and trace her path from Ghana to Michigan State to Loma Linda, where disappointment, burnout, and hidden shame collide with a gospel that finally feels personal. Her story centers on learning to trust God as Father and taking Romans 6 seriously when life refuses to cooperate. • growing up Seventh-day Adventist in Ghana and learning faith through family prayer • early disappoi...

Hannah shares how a lifetime of performance-based faith, fear, and shame slowly unravels as God teaches her what grace actually means. We talk through trauma, health, grief, motherhood, and the mind-body connection until the real miracle lands: her head and heart finally agree that God loves her. • growing up between Filipino and Scottish identity in rural Australia • early doubts about prayer and...

Two old insecurities collide and turn a new marriage into a “thunderstorm,” until surrender and daily time with God start rewiring how love and safety work. We talk through the shift from fixing symptoms to naming core lies, practicing forgiveness, and learning Sabbath rest that changes the atmosphere at home. • getting married fast after sensing God’s leading • immediate differences in background...

We hear Manalo trace a winding path from Catholic superstition and street survival to new age spirituality, Scripture, and a real encounter with Jesus. His story lands on repentance, fatherhood, and the kind of forgiveness that feels impossible until God supplies it. • growing up between poverty and provision in Manila within a big family system • moving to Queens and building a tough persona out...

We sit down with Huy to name the difference between fake suffering that spirals inward and real suffering that comes with living on mission after Jesus sets us free. We talk peace, the true diagnosis of sin, and the practices that keep us from growing weary when we go back into the “building” to help others find the way out. • fake suffering as constant self-focus and mental striving • peace found...

Tina Chan connects a refugee childhood, a high-pressure home, and traumatic births to the anxiety that later exploded into panic attacks. We talk through how therapy, practical tools, and a deeper view of God’s love shift fear into a steadier kind of freedom. • escaping Vietnam and reaching a Thailand refugee camp through danger and scarcity • early experiences of fear and hyper-independence in an...

We trace Samuel’s journey from legalistic zeal and secret shame to a settled identity in Christ that produces real freedom and lasting change. A candid friend, a simple rule—believe God’s word over your life—and honest confession turn burden into peace. • growing up Adventist with sincere devotion and heavy performance pressure • school trauma, social isolation, and low self‑esteem shaping a rule‑...

We trace a life marked by grief, shame, and spiritual oppression to a restored marriage, steady identity in Jesus, and a practical way to stop being ruled by intrusive thoughts. We speak plainly about betrayal, depression, and the gospel that heals what effort and fear could not. • growing up in Alaska amid alcohol, violence, and loss • sister’s death shaping fear of abandonment and self-hate • ea...

We trace Camille’s journey from childhood fear and college doubt to a practical, grace-filled approach to parenting. Identity in Christ, renewing the mind with Scripture, and simple practices transform shame, mom rage, and marriage strain into steady peace. • fear-led faith reshaped by Scripture • Peru breakthrough on Pharaoh and God’s wrath • union with Christ and freedom from sin in Romans • Ala...

We trace Jon’s journey from image management to resting in God’s love, and how that shift reshapes marriage, ministry, and daily life. Shame loses power, identity settles, and love starts doing the work fear never could. • why behavior change without identity fails • living from no condemnation in Christ • how shame fuels both rebellion and pride • moving from judging to observing in relationships...

We trace Kevin’s path from a chaotic childhood and a volatile father to marriage struggles, porn as a coping mechanism, special-needs parenting, and a surprising breakthrough when the gospel finally lands. The story turns toward freedom, confession, and a rebuilt marriage rooted in grace. • Adventist roots and a home shaped by volatility and lectures • Seven-year church break and return through pa...

We trace Izzy’s journey from anxious validation-seeking to a settled identity in Christ, moving from an “okay gospel” to real freedom where feelings serve rather than rule. Practical shifts around forgiveness, thought life, relationships, and provision show what abundance looks like day to day. • early family story and separation anxiety shaping control and people pleasing • feeling like an outsid...

We share how a lifelong scorekeeping faith broke under the weight of grace and how salvation as a gift, not a contract, reshaped Verna’s story from control to freedom. The gospel shifts behavior from obligation to fruit, turning church culture into real communion. • upbringing in a strict, rule-focused faith culture • marriage, family conflict, and a move to Michigan • a welcoming church community...

We trace Ariana’s path from a small-town church and a turbulent home to anxiety, addiction, striving, and finally a clear identity in Christ. A Friday night with Scripture and a single line—“feelings aren’t Lord”—becomes the hinge that shifts her marriage, her mind, and her future. • growing up Adventist in Mankato amid family alcoholism and divorce • public school pressures, validation through da...

We share how a rule-shaped faith gave way to a Spirit-led life. Torie’s steady devotion and mission work collide with Jonathan’s raw honesty about addiction, and together we discover that grace, not effort, breaks chains and heals shame. • growing up Adventist, performance and reputation • mission years in Bolivia, language and leadership struggles • COVID challenges, visas, and resilience • Jonat...

We gather with a live room to explore why the gospel begins with rest, not effort, and hear how that truth lands in real lives. Testimonies trace freedom from control, loneliness, anxiety, people pleasing, and the fear of getting theology perfect. • rest as the starting point for spiritual life • Ephesians 2 and Hebrews 4 on seated identity • releasing control and OCD patterns • moving from loneli...