One Good Story Podcast

After they return from exile, the children of Israel reconstruct God's temple.  But the building is a shadow of its former glory, and the presence of God seems conspicuously absent.  When will this sacred place really feel like home again? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

For our 50th episode, we return to Jesus' parable of the Prodigal Son with a fresh set of eyes.  Faith Bosland is the Coordinator of Content and Faith-Based Resources for Think Tank, Inc., an excellent storyteller in her own right, and a good friend of the podcast. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.sub...

The Apostle John, while sitting in exile, receives a vision in which he is transported to the very throne room of God.  The sight is so strange his description is both awe-inspiring and baffling.  What does he learn while standing in this sacred space? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

God leads Ezekiel in a trance to a valley where a morbid vision ensues.  Bones become skeletons, skeletons become corpses, and corpses await the breath of God in military formation.   What is the prophet to make of this strange scene? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

God raises up an unlikely hero to deliver the people of Gilead.  But while God understands Jephthah, does Jephthah understand God?  What does God value more:  your word or your children?   This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

When Jesus ventures outside of Israel, a foreign woman comes to him, begging for his help in freeing her daughter from an evil spirit.  The interplay between the two that follows is shocking and bizarre.  Why does Jesus insult this poor woman?  And what does her strange response mean? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes...

Two Israelites are tasked with spying on Jericho and barely make it out of the city.  The escape only occurs thanks to a lie and a prostitute.  The first hero in the conquest of Canaan sure is a strange one. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

As more and more non-Jewish people begin to believe in Jesus, arguments arise about what one really needs to do to follow him.  Can you love Jesus  if you never knew Moses?  And who gets to decide these things anyway?  What's up with this strange and seemingly contradictory solution? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes,...

A gifted seer is summoned by the Moabite king to curse a foreign nation called the Israelites.  The story that follows involves an armed angel, a confused prophet, a violently heated argument with a donkey, and a really strange narrative about what it really means to be used by God. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes,...

It's one of the most iconic stories in human history.  The image of the woman beneath a tree, holding a piece of fruit and conversing with a snake is almost universally recognizable.  But if all God's creation is good, where did the snake come from?  And why does it talk?  And why doesn't the woman find any of this...weird? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other sub...

Accounts of miracles in Scripture occur commonly and do not appear weird to the familiar reader.  But some supernatural interventions are stranger than others. As Jesus' disciples began to carry his message to people outside of Jerusalem, a man named Philip proclaims this good news in the desert, before mysteriously vanishing without a trace.  What happened to him?   This is a public episode. If y...

A horrific scene unfolds outside of Bethel.  After a man of God curses a mob of boys who insult him, two bears emerge from the woods and maul dozens of the gang.  What is happening here?  Is God really being vindictive towards a group of ornery children? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

In Acts 5, the young, growing church in Jerusalem is rocked by the strange and sudden deaths of two of its members.  Why, in a story otherwise filled with miracles and spiritual transformation, are two people now falling lifeless to the ground?  And what does it mean for this new community of Jesus-followers? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get...

Most people remember Jonah for the Big Fish that stops the prophet in his tracks and forces him back towards the call of God for his life.  So it's a bit weird that the story actually ends with the title character bitterly complaining about a shriveled plant in the desert.  What is really happening here? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acce...

Tim and Justin check-in from a longer-than-expected hiatus.  Find out what and when is next with the podcast. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

A farmer sets out to plant his crops for the season, but the seed falls on various types of soil, leading to different results. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

A widow relentlessly pesters an unscrupulous judge in her town until he provides her with the help she desires. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

A wealthy man departs his home for a long journey, unsure of when he will return. Before taking his leave, he entrusts three of his servants with a significant amount of his riches. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

In a departure from his typical tales, Jesus leads his listeners into the afterlife for a story about poverty, riches, and the assumptions we make about the people who possess them. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

What does the Kingdom of Heaven look like? How does something so small and insignificant transform into something so big and meaningful? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

A man finds himself hopelessly indebted to his master, and yet suddenly fully forgiven of what he owes. Will he find it within himself to show the same mercy? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

When religious men grumble about the company Jesus keeps, he launches into a story about a father and his two sons: one rebellious, one dutiful; one forgiven, one full of resentment. As the father throws a lavish party, which son finds himself still a long way off? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.sub...

A priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan walk down a road. In one of his most famous parables, Jesus and an expert of the law debate a pivotal question: Who is my neighbor? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com

The owner of an estate hires workers at different points throughout the day to tend to his vineyard. When he settles accounts at the end of the day, a question about the value of their labor arises amongst the hired hands. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit timvoltz.substack.com