FINISHING WELL

Send us Fan Mail REPLAY OF THE FIRST FWM PODCAST In this episode of the Finishing Well Podcast, Dr. Hal Habecker and Dr. Randy Hess revisit the very first episode of the show, originally recorded in December 2020. The episode opens with Dr. Habecker expressing his deep desire for older generations—parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents—to be active encouragers and mentors to younger generat...

Send us Fan Mail The Podcast for today is one Vicki and I recorded August 14, 2023. The topic is our “Identity.” It is our most listened to podcast of the 178 we’re recorded. I think it is still one of the most critical issues of life and of our advancing years. Who are we? What does our identity of being “in Christ” mean in terms growing older? What is life “in Christ” all about? Here it is again...

Send us Fan Mail " Hope is not destroyed by suffering - it is developed by it." With the certainty of hope that only God instills, Dr. Randy Marshall shares his journey with metastatic prostate cancer.  His story will encourage every listener. Randy emphasizes the importance of faith, hope, and community, noting how his illness has become a mission field, providing spiritual support to o...

Send us Fan Mail Listen to Vicki Habecker and Karen Brosseau talk about their ‘momma hearts’ during the difficult journey God has led them on as adult sons face critical medical problems. Support the show "Finishing Well Ministries aims to encourage and inspire aging Christians to understand and embrace God’s calling in their later years, equipping them to actively pursue and fulfill His call...

Send us Fan Mail THEOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES OF MARRIAGE In this episode, Hal Habecker and Dr. Ken Wilgus discuss the theological principles of marriage, emphasizing the importance of recognizing Jesus as the creator and sustainer of marriage. They explore the concepts of treating one's spouse as one's own flesh, loving one's wife as oneself, and serving one's wife as serving onesel...

Send us Fan Mail FOUR PRINCIPLES TO IMPROVE A MARRIAGE In this episode of the Finishing Well Podcast, Hal Habecker and Ken Wilgus discuss the concept of "ringleaders," a framework for Christian men to reflect on and improve their marriages. Ken introduces the four principles:  I belong to Jesus the Creator of my marriage. Jesus has joined me to my wife as one flesh. To love my wife is to...

Send us Fan Mail Meet Jim Granberry and listen to his story about walking through life with his friend, Steve.  God called Jim to walk through life with his friend. In Jim’s words,  “Knowing that the diagnosis could be the ultimate cause of his death, we walked the path together, hoping and praying that it would not.” Jim’s story is a holy story. We often never know ahead of time how God uses frie...

Send us Fan Mail Our founder gives a brief 20-minute encouragement and a challenge for the new year before us. Our mission? We exist to call a generation of aging believers to leverage their lives for the fame of Jesus and the glory of God. Let’s embrace 2026 for this purpose. Hal Habecker, host of the Finishing Well podcast, reflects on the mission of aging Christians to lead, influence, and enco...

Send us Fan Mail Two physical therapists talk about staying active as we age.  Vicki Habecker interviews Judy Hendry about ideas to keep our bodies in the best physical shape that our limitations will allow.  Listen and learn some practical advice from two PT's. Judy emphasizes maintaining daily activities, social engagement, and exercise to prevent decline. She advises against over-assistanc...

Send us Fan Mail Hal and Vicki interview Greg and Louise Master as they share their story of Greg’s life-threatening cancer.  Listen and learn with them through their faith-filled journey. Greg Master shares his journey with bladder cancer, diagnosed on May 12, 2023. He discovered the tumor himself through a CT scan and was initially given a single-digit two-year survival rate. Greg underwent chem...

Send us Fan Mail “Learning from Boomerang Kids” Hal, Vicki, and their 43-year-old son, Jonathan, share their story of Jonathan moving back into their home for a season. Really, Jonathan is telling his story of what God is doing in his life and thereby the story of what God is doing through him in their home. God is at work in more ways than we might imagine. Support the show "Finishing Well M...

Send us Fan Mail Hezekiah's story started well, very well. He became king at age 25 and "did right in the sight of the Lord" (2 Kings 18.1-3). He removed false idols, trusted in the LORD, and clung to Him faithfully. When Hezekiah was afflicted with a terminal illness, the prophet Isaiah told him: "Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live" (2 Kings 20.1). He...

Send us Fan Mail “On September 11, we remembered the 24th anniversary of 9/11, an unforgettable day. Darin Kinder, a personal friend of FWM, was there that day and experienced 9/11 as a responder. It was a gut-wrenching day that would change the course of his life. In this podcast, listen to his story as he shares it with Hal and all of us. Buy his book, Bury Me in a Dirty Suit, and read it for yo...

Send us Fan Mail Moses 120 years of Purpose Hal Habecker continues his series on How Characters from the Bible Finished their Lives We meet Moses in Exodus 2, where God protected him from Pharaoh's death threats and sovereignly led him to grow up in Pharaoh's house during his first 40 years. At age 80, Moses was entrusted with leading Israel out of Egypt. Despite his failures, including...

Send us Fan Mail Peter & John: Faithful to the End Jesus called Peter and John away from their work as fishermen to follow Him and become "fishers of men" (Matthew 4.18-22). Though we don't know their exact ages when called, Christ's call on their lives was a lifelong commitment. Peter's Journey From his brash early days to his denial of Christ, Peter was transformed b...

Send us Fan Mail PART 2: Dawn Pownell discusses her faith journey and the joy of rethinking her faith walk. She emphasizes the importance of trusting God without sight, drawing parallels to John's gospel and his lifelong faith journey. Dawn shares her new role teaching at Dallas Bible Church and her openness to new opportunities, including spending time with grandchildren and subbing in schoo...

Send us Fan Mail Daniel: Faithful through the Decades We meet Daniel in captivity when he was perhaps about 16 years old (Daniel 1.1-7). From the beginning, "Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king's choice food" (Daniel 1.8). Daniel served under Babylonian and Persian rulers for at least 65 years. In his 80s, he was still going strong, battling i...

Send us Fan Mail Dawn Pownell discusses her transition from a 30-year teaching career to retirement, emphasizing her identity as a child of Christ rather than her role as a teacher. Despite initial reluctance, she felt a divine appointment to return to teaching after staying home with her children. Over five years, she wrestled with the decision, ultimately finding peace in retiring. A pivotal mom...

Send us Fan Mail Jehoiada & Jehoshabeath: Faithful to the End The story of Jehoiada ("Joe") and Jehoshabeath ("Beth") demonstrates how elderly believers can have tremendous impact even in their final decades. Age 83 When evil Queen Athaliah destroyed the royal offspring to take the throne, "Joe" (about 83 years old) and "Beth" (around 80) rescued little...

Send us Fan Mail In the "Finishing Well" podcast, host Hal Habecker interviews LESLIE BLUM about the role of music in life and aging. Leslie shares her upbringing in a musical Christian home, where her father, a soloist, and her mother, a pianist, fostered her love for music. She discusses the emotional impact of music, citing major and minor chords as examples, and how music connects wi...

Send us Fan Mail Our story regarding Eli begins not with Eli but with God's judge who will succeed him. God's successor to Eli will be the great prophet/judge Samuel so we begin with his birth and background. Samuel's Birth Samuel was born out of a godly family (1 Samuel 1.1-2.11). Hannah prayed for a son and promised to dedicate him to the Lord. Eli blessed her prayer, and when Sam...

Send us Fan Mail  David was a man after God's own heart, and we all identify with him because of the way he lived his life. He was out there, you know, leading people making mistakes. I just just loving God passionately with his heart dancing before God. I mean, he was enjoying life with God. But there are a lot of lessons to learn from his life. I have the text there, and you can follow them...

Send us Fan Mail We meet Joshua first when he was selected as one of the 12 tribes to spy out the new land from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun (Numbers 13.8). Early Faith Joshua (along with Caleb) spoke with confidence about how God would take them into the promised land and defeat the enemies. He had great confidence in God who would be with them. If Yahweh delights in us, then he wi...

Send us Fan Mail Don't get sidetracked as we finish, Gideon is faithful, but watch his story. It's fascinating to me. You know, we begin to see Gideon in Judges six, the angel visits him and gives him a sign where Gideon puts a sacrifice in the rock and the angel brings fire down and takes it all to heaven and gets his attention. He's not expecting God to work this way, but God choo...

Send us Fan Mail  Israel loved Joseph more than all of his sons because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a very colored tunic. His brothers saw that his father loved him more than all of his other brothers, so they hated him and could not speak to him on faith. Friendly terms. How would you like that growing up in that kind of home where your older brothers hated you? On top of that,...