The Grab For Approval

My Name is Jacob: The Liar Who Quit Grabbing for Approval.In this episode we sit down with Jacob Absher who grew up inthe OKC area.  From a young age the nameof Jacob -heel grabber- was defining for him. Between having an alcoholic father, built-up rage, and struggle with addiction, Jacob spent some of his formative years wearing a mask.  With one group, he was the Christian who loved Jesus, with another group he was someone who grabbed the mask to fit the occasion.  Grabbing for approval from his parents, friends and, mostrevealingly, himself drained had his energy. And the only reprieve from this grasp came at camp once a year where he would get into the presence of God. But that reprieve was threatened one year when his ankle was injured on the first day of camp. He had to return home away from his escape.  All the hurt and anguish inside of him came spilling over and created a defining moment for God to grab ahold of Jacob.

How do you get from Detroit, Michigan to Oklahoma City,Oklahoma?  How do you beat the odds ofgrowing up in a fatherless home and now being a great father to your children and a great father figure to other fatherless teens?  How do years of anger get wiped away to turnto joy? There is only one answer, God.Jamey Dolby is from a single mother home in the Detroit areawhere he experienced a revolving door of men that didn’t turn into fathers.  But one day one man stuckaround even when he didn’t have to.  For the first time Jamey felt like he could connect to someone who really caredabout him and his brother.  But it all faded too soon…and the anger would soon set in. That loss would be a pivotal turning point in the soul of Jamey Dolby.  But God had other plans.  Rage does not have the final word, God does!  Listento find out what really happened to Jamey as he grew up and how God used him to change other teen’s lives that looked similar to his own through youth ministry and the teen challenge ministry.

A Christian giant in the Kansas Assembly of God, Dwight Dozier, has been able to create a great amount of impact for God's kingdom over the years, because of God and the willingness to serve. Dwight had a superhero for a mom, taking him and his other siblings to church by herself as they grew up. With a rollercoaster of a relationship with the Lord in his early years, Dwight said he just wanted to fell noticed by the Lord. Well, he was and then he took that to the next level in his continual years in ministry by helping save dying churches and giving resources to others that needed it. Listen to see that God still has plans for greater kingdom impact in the church!

Adam Hathaway grew up in a military family bouncing from one country to another.  His parents were one of the most stable areas of his life.  With a marine father who was highly promotable and had a prominent name and a mother who loved Jesus, Adam had a good up bringing.  Adam grew up attending church when the rare opportunity arose, but he mainly went out of obligation to his mother, but life changed when he left for college.After Adam got out of the house and went to the university, alcohol entered the conversation and did not leave for a LONG time.  Adam classified his battle with alcohol among other self-destructive behaviors as a ‘game.’  “Sin will leave no leftovers.  It doesn’t want part of you; it wants all of you.  Satan plays the long game, but God plays a longer game.”  In over a ten-year bout with managing a façade while chasing cheap moments for happiness, we see that the inward battle of chasing ‘good things’ devoid of God still leave you feeling empty.

Pastor and author Tony Campolo flies into Honolulu for a conference, but his sleep schedule doesn’t account for sleeping in Hawaii.  With no chance of having sweet dreams anymore, Pastor Tony looks for some breakfast but finds something entirely different.  A birthday party, a pastor and how the wise words of Jesus and Mother Teresa can change anyone’s life. Make sure to check out Levi Lusko’s book, “Last Supper on the Moon” and Tony Campolo’s book, “Kingdom of Heaven is a Party.”https://www.amazon.com/KINGDOM-GOD-PARTY-Tony-Campolo/dp/0849933994https://www.amazon.com/Last-Supper-Moon-Christs-Fantastic/dp/0785252851

The Roman Empire was split between the east and the west, but even worse than that, the empire was split between God and persecution. In the moderately sized town of Sebaste, 40 Roman soldiers find themselves on the wrong side of the empire to be on the right side of The Kingdom of God. In a battle of wills and of faith in God, these 40 men stood their ground against the icy winds of evil and chose to endure to the frozen end. Bribery, power, position, torture, traitors, and much more in this episode about the 40 Martyrs of Sebaste.

"It wasn't that I struggled with (fill in the blank with what ever sin you struggle with), it was that I struggled with it alone." In part two of the interview with Matt Cossey we dive into the how and when Matt was called into ministry. Whether it was singing God's Word or speaking it, Matt was content to do whatever he could to serve the ministry he was apart of. Then we discussed when Matt went through during the wilderness time of his life wishing he had friends to bear his burdens with. What could make our struggles easier in this life? Find out in this episode of the Faith in Focus Podcast.

The calling and identity of Matt's life was summed up in two phrases. Sing My Word and Speak My Word. Matt heard the call of God throughout life to go wherever God directed, whether that meant being a youth pastor, worship pastor, or an executive pastor in charge of building a church. In the first episode of a two part interview you'll get the chance to hear an in depth walk through ministry opportunities in the midst of a wilderness moment. Part two coming the morning of December 22, 2023. Merry Christmas!

“One night 5 friends got together to escape life. A couple days later 500 people got together to celebrate a life.” From being left by his father before birth, his mother attaching herself to a different father figure, and a God who seemingly put him on a path to fail; Isiah Smith is no stranger to the feeling of abandonment.  Isiah turned to drugs to escape the reality of his situation. Drugs had control of his brain, body, wallet, and ultimately his life.  After one sobering night when Isiah lost a friend he decided he couldn’t keep living this way, so he began to let God change his life again. God took the feelings of abandonment and replaced them with love and lasting community. 

A murdered father, being on the run from a criminal organization, and becoming an illegal alien in the early years of years of your life would be considered a wild and crazy dream for most people in the US, but for my friend David Sanchez this wild idea was his reality. You would think that dealing with the ill effects of the family business would be the most difficult part of life, but finding your identity in a new country where the people around you have a different skin color and speak a different language is really the hard part. But God always strikes at the right time and now David is on mission to do what God has called him to do.