Wrestling with the Inner Man

Many of the most intellectually gifted people in this world struggle with true belief in something as simple as genuine faith. The analytical training always asks another question seeking proof.  And I can't think of many things worse that what a good old Garth Brooks country song says, "standing outside the fire." Some folks stand at the threshold of belief like at a doorway to fre...

Are you the kind of guy who retreats to the cave of isolation like a bear when you get wounded? So many of us do exactly that and then choose to self-medicate to numb our pain with all manner of vices which, in the end, only compound our problems and our wounds. Or we simply stuff them so far down that we never properly process them. One of my mentors, Robert Lewis, says that a real man looks back...

We are entering a new school year and football season here in September where everyone begins anew with an undefeated season! But just as fall follows summer, not all seasonal changes are a fresh start.  Most are mileposts for transitions dictated by God’s timetable like rings on a tree stump. Take me for instance, I reach a milestone this September myself by becoming Medicare eligible. And like t...

Besides your father, did you have a scoutmaster, teacher, coach, or pastor play a vital role in your upbringing and manhood development? Perhaps it was a grandfather or uncle? In our diaspora society today, we are often moving around and away from extended family to go off to college, pursue careers, or enter military service. But for most of human history it wasn't like this! In fact, up unt...

Summer is a season where temperatures and tempers can run hot!  And August is typically the hottest month of all, often called the “dog days of summer.”  This also means that our law enforcement officials across the country must work a bit harder keeping the peace.   We see more and more film clips on the news of people attacking and ambushing uniformed officers. In fact, last year over 100 office...

It seems that almost daily we read stories in the headlines about celebrities, politicians, and even preachers who are destroyed by rapid or overwhelming success.  P. Diddy Combs is the most notable recent one. It may not be covered in the news or on television, but success has ruined many people for a very long time, dating all the way back to biblical times. In fact, one of the most familiar scr...

Summer is a season when many young people have the opportunity to experience a mission trip to see the need of a hurting world up close and perhaps for the first time in person. It can be life altering in some cases and certainly a lasting reminder to count the blessings we all take for granted most of the time. Both within the U.S. and around the world there are plenty of people that need to not...

There is an old saying that goes: “The only two certain things in life are death and taxes” Well, we know for sure that death will one day greet us all thanks to the fall in the garden. It’s an uncomfortable topic, especially as we approach its threshold. Some of might die suddenly and unexpectedly, even while we enjoy good health.  But many of us are on a slow march of decline both physically and...

Haven't every single one of felt totally worthless at some point in our lives? Some may feel this way constantly or have for a very long time. It is a pit of despair, a quagmire of quicksand that steals our self worth and the intrinsic value we all have as creatures made in His image.  And most of the time the Accuser is right there, whispering in our head, confirming our worst feelings in at...

Father’s Day is a day when we all try to express our appreciation to our fathers, no matter how old we are. And one of the best ways to do that is to do what he has asked or trained us to do. It should be so with our Heavenly Father as well! And Matthew 28:19-20, which is known as “The Great Commission” issues this command as Jesus' last words to his disciples: Therefore, go and make disciple...

Hey Gen Z folks!  This episode is especially for you! Did you wake today thinking “I’m going to take on the world and chart my own course of rugged individualism?” It is the American way! However, we often find out very quickly that it might not be God’s way for us and He seems to prevail in about…100% of these situations. Today I am so excited to have my “listener prototype” as my guest. Nick Har...

The recent death of Pope Francis and the process to select a successor captures the headlines across the world as “The Vatican” iconically represents what many less vigorous believers think of as “The Church” My guest, Dr Timothy West, works full-time as a Senior Ministry Consultant for NL Moore & Associates, a firm dedicated to guiding churches through senior leadership transitions, particula...

Mother’s Day is right around the corner coming up on May 11th!  Ahead of this day honoring mothers and families, I thought it might be a timely topic to discuss a wrestling match that none of us ever wanted to have, that of blending a family. It’s one none of us ever wanted because it means that, for whatever reason, our first marriage has ended and with divorce rates around 50% it means that half...

The genesis of this episode began with my utter exasperation shopping for new homeowners insurance after receiving a 100% increase in my premium over last year's rate.  As I examined the root causes of the rate hike, I realized that I just might need to re-evaluate my entire risk management mindset. The California wildfires in January, recent floods in Kentucky and Tennessee, and the Uri Wint...

The first official day of Spring was March 20th and we are entering Holy Week with Palm Sunday this weekend.  Both help us to blossom ourselves both spiritually and physically so I thought this episode should be one that promises hope and healing. Just like Christ's death on the cross brought despair to his followers, a grim diagnosis for one's own health can also be a dark place.  It is...

In our last show my guest, Travis Koch, and I began our discussion about the wrestling match many parents are facing with school choice. We also discussed the book “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt.  The subtitle of his book is “How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.”  His primary diagnosis of the root cause was outdoor play has been replaced with sc...

Parents throughout the United States experienced an unintended consequence from the COVID pandemic from 2020 to 2022: an up close look at their children's education curriculum and teaching materials.  And they were shocked! Across the country children fell way behind and most are still struggling to catch up, especially boys, due to the culture and gender wars that have exacerbated the proble...

The first quarter of every new year often has a heavy focus on finances, whether it be personal or business.   Our national debt is north of $36 trillion, an inconceivable figure! We are all feeling the pinch of inflation as it erodes our buying power and savings. Basically, at every level of our society from individuals, to families, to communities and even our country we have a HUGE problem.  It...

My guest for this episode is my good friend Pastor Michael Tadlock, Senior Pastor at Bethel Church in Jennings LA. Michael shares his miraculous healing story after contracting COVID at the end of 2020 which led to a severe bout of pancreatitis that almost took his life and required a 40 day hospitalization. But as Paul Harvey used to say, "And now, the REST of the story!" After recoveri...

Today's episode concludes our dynamic four part series on the spiritual provisions Pastor Dwight Edwards covers in his book Revolution Within.  First is our new purity, second is our new identity, third is our new disposition, and fourth is the new power that comes with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This is magnificent because it is the same resurrection power that raised Christ from dea...

I am so pleased to announce that this is the 100th episode of Wrestling With the Inner Man to kick off 2025! We are doing a four part series on spiritual provisions Pastor Dwight Edwards covers in his book book Revolution Within with this show as the third installment.  The previous two provisions we discussed were new purity and new identity. The third provision, our new disposition, explains how...

We are covering spiritual provision number two, a new identity, from pastor Dwight Edwards book Revolution Within  in this episode. Think of Matt Damon's character Jason Bourne in the film The Bourne Identity. He was given a new identity in the movie, but in his case, he kept returning to his old identity to piece together his old life.  With our new identity in Christ, we don't ever hav...

Because of what God has done for every believer, you actually possess outlandish treasures you may never have dreamed existed! God has made "New Covenant" promises to each of us. And in fulfillment of those promises, He has placed within every believer four revolutionary provisions: a new purity, a new identity, a new disposition, and a new power. These lavish supernatural resources perm...

Wrestling with submitting to authority is a very common issue for most men but especially in adolescence when we are trying to rebel in order to define our own personality in the breaking away from our parents' orbit. Honestly, it has been a lifelong struggle for me as it also represents a struggle with pride. My guest for this episode is Chaplain Richmond E. Stoglin, a man of distinguished m...

In our last episode we covered the identities of addiction which an addict must shed to become a genuine and authentic individual.  In this episode we have successful enterpreneur Greg Walker again giving us his unique perspective on shedding identities of addiction, but this time it is the identity of family members and other loved ones who have become enablers or codependents who mean well by re...