Episodes
What do you get when you cross 350-square-feet, six people, a one one-eyed cat named Sirius, and an honest look at what makes up our identity? This episode.
Ashley Auerbach, a mom of four turned-tiny-living expert (whose life is soon to be featured on a TV show!), talks about obedience and the beautiful shredding it does to our perceptions of self.
We also have her figure out our tiny living problems such as how to play Cones of Dunshire in our hypothetical new RV, and what to do in said hypothetical RV if we want to buy our kids those crazy huge Costco bears for Christmas.
We laugh and get...
Yup. We are talking about looks. Specifically, clothing. This may seem like too surface-level of a conversation for this podcast, but aren't clothes an expression of who we are? An expression of who God made us to be?
We would say, yes.
This conversation arose as I (Laurie) was stressing out way too much about what to wear on a stage. I found myself dressing for my audience as opposed to dressing as an expression of who God made me to be.
Then Kelli ODell--a friend and our Producer Steve's wife--entered the scene. She got to know my heart and helped me express it tangibly.
Now, I don't stre...
If you have ever struggled with pornography addiction or are close to someone who has, please listen to this episode.
Licensed mental-health counselor, ordained minister, and author Jay Stringer, helped peel back the layers of understanding for all of us as we heard results of his nearly 4,000-person study on the "whys" behind unwanted sexual behavior.
From the research laid out in his incredible book, Unwanted, we dig into family systems that can foster certain types of lust and anger, the power of shame (and what removes it), and steps to take toward actual freedom.
And of course, Chuck N...
Do you intrinsically feel the shift in culture over the last ten years or so, but you can't quite name it?
Author and pastor Sam Allberry can. In addition to being a really great hang, Sam lays out four cultural shifts and seven responses to those shifts on today's episode.
This is not one to miss.
//: Highlights:
"As I deny self I don't become less me. As I follow Jesus and deny self I become more the me God had thought up in the first place. Isn't that amazing? God can take a group of us and we all become more like Jesus, but we won't become more like each other." --Sam Allberry
"Jesus...
If you grew up in the purity movement era of Christianity--where a lot of talk around sexuality was based on 'just say 'no' to sex before marriage'--were you burned by it? Encouraged by it?
Our friend, Jason Soucinek, executive director and founder of ProjectSix19 talks us through the benefits and detriments of talking about sexuality with a focus on this type of purity, and helps us consider another way.
We also dig into favorite group games (just don't talk about kickball kaythxsbye), get a bit crazy about being inclusive of single people, and have a giant take us to Goofball Island for r...
Every week, we invite people into our home for food, conversation, and games. It's basically the podcast but in real life.
My real life little sister, Angela Bowles, talks about how this works both as a biological sibling and sister in Christ.
We also discuss the first time I shared my story with Angela (on her 16th birthday?!), how we get motivated to do difficult things, and PLEASE listen to the after-closing bloopers. We guffawed.
//: Highlights:
"I got super convicted by my own mouth on a stage. I was talking [on a platform] about how the Church is the hope of the world, and how we ne...
Do you ever wonder how people can go from living comfortably to saying "yes" to serving people courageously?
We do.
So we asked some of our friends how they did it.
Tom Mollhagen transformed from being born in a brothel in India, to living the American dream, to going back and serving those he left behind. His wife, Dana, went from accepting Jesus on a swing set at five years old, to a successful nursing career, to working side-by-side with Thomas in India.
Our friends are not special Christians; they are normal Christians who are obedient.
Hear how they went from the American dream to sayi...
91% of US adults believe the best way to find yourself is by looking within yourself, and 2 out of 5 Americans believe that, when it comes to what happens in the country today, "people of faith" and "religion" are a part of the problems in our country.
How can we speak into this environment as believers?
Author, speaker, and leader of leaders, Gabe Lyons, helps break down how Christians can be both courageous and faithful in a world that thinks we are extreme and irrelevant.
We launch the courage conversation by talking about a time when someone quite innocently (but publicly) accused me of...
Do you ever feel like you are a spiritual extremist? Some days you're running so hard and fast toward Jesus, and then you get tired. Or you mess up. Or someone says something to throw you off and you stop. And putz around a bit. And get discouraged. But then you get convicted and you start sprinting until you...don't.
This back-forth, sprint-stop can be exhausting.
Josh Kelley, author of 'Radically Normal', talks through some of this "obsessive Christianity" and "complacent Christianity."
What is the difference?
How can we halt the extremism cycle?
It was a conversation that made us all th...
Author, poet, and artist, Jackie Hill Perry, is in the house! As we do with every guest, we get at the intersection between the gospel and Jackie's real, right-now life.
In addition to Jackie's story of surrender, we discuss how she and her husband stay connected through the storms of life, how to interact with people who want to make her into a deity or the devil, and if she were forced to only use Comic Sans or Papyrus fonts for the rest of her life--which would she choose?
Join us.
P.S. You can hear Jackie's four-month-old baby off and on throughout the podcast. It's the sweetest.
//: ...
If you're in need of hearing a story of God's unmistakable reality, you may want to listen here.
David Bennett, author of 'A War of Loves' (Zondervan, Nov. 2018), shares his story and God's obvious breaking into his life. David was a once an atheist LGBT+ activist, and now pours out his life for all people because of God's love in him. The story includes a psychic telling him he was chosen by Jesus, asking his friends what love is, a prophetic moment from an uncle, and a life-transforming prayer in a bar.
But after that transformation, David still has to walk what we call the awkward middle...
Gratitude. Joy. Hope.
God has done some healing work on us, and we are sharing a few reasons why and how. We get practical.
Also we do a live, old-timey candy taste testing and it's disgusting.
Welcome.
//: Highlights:
"The reason I didn't leave is the same reason you didn't leave. It's because of God." --Matt Krieg
"It's been so hard to crack open my heart and let people in, but it has been so worth it." --Laurie Krieg
//: Do the Next Thing:
For More
Wesley Hill is known as a big brother to many people who have recently come out as celibate LGBT+ Christians. When this conversation was still whispered about in church basements, Wes stepped up to the podium and offered a beautiful picture of living with hope.
We talk about this "big brother" status, as well as dive into the new-to-us concept of emotional chastity: giving up the right or demand for extremely intimate non-sexual relationships.
We'd love to hear what you think of this concept of emotional chastity, and please let us know which goofy triathlon would you try. (You'll understan...
When I was first making the connection between my brain and attractions toward women, I promised myself that I would never tell my parents. I was terrified. "Would they reject me? Does this mean I am not a Christian? Or I'm the worst-broken Christian?"
I'm so thankful that rejection wasn't a part of what I encountered, but it was still rocky. Lots of tears shed on this one with my dad, Randy Hekman.
Also lots of cheese-related laughs. We play a game called "To Cheese or Not to Cheese." Come, laugh, cry, and goof around with us.
//: Highlights:
"What is love? God gives you love for your...
Loneliness. We all experience it, but not many of us want to talk about it. Let’s start the conversation here (and connect it to the necessity of friendship) with blogger and our new friend, Bridget Eileen!
Also, we got new sound effects. Also we play “Explain a Film Plot Badly.” IT FUNNY.
Also listen to the end. Producer Steve likes to hide nuggets.
//: Highlights:
“I really struggled with the question, ‘How could impossibly be saved if I still have this struggle?’ It was so important to me to realize God doesn’t just save me in the past, but he is saving me in my present.” --Bridget Eil...
When I (Laurie) was at a recent teaching event focused on leaning into LGBT+ conversation with grace and truth, I heard Daniel Mattson, author, speaker, and trombone player, share a story that made my jaw drop. As he taught, I found myself (for the first time) jealous of the way someone suffered.
He offers that story here.
We also play a ridiculous game where we all practice our acting skills (as West Michigan moms, hungry dinosaurs, and texting Millennials with focal fry), and Daniel and I lean into what labels we choose to identify (same-sex attracted? gay?) and why.
Welcome back, friends...
Remember when people used to write "HAGS" in your yearbook? That's this episode. Plus some more hearty stuff and a T-Rex costume.
We talk favorite Goofball Island and Heart of the Matter moments, how has this podcast impacted us from start to finish, and talk future goals for it (please come be our best friends, Chris Pratt and Terry Cruze).
//: Highlight:
“There were some days when Matt and I would come in and record, and we were in fuming states or silent states. This podcast was a place to laugh together and find where we agree--which is the gospel.” --Laurie Krieg
//: Do the Next T...
This is our last official full-length podcast for season one of the HIMH podcast! [Insert weeping]
We are going to us off into the July break talking about a favorite summer activity: camping. But this episode covers much more than camp life. Our guest, Susan Titus, a shares practical experience of caring for LGBT+ campers as well as ways God has convicted her to love LGBT+ people. (Her methods include reaching out to people in gay bars and wearing rainbow bracelets). Per usual, we learn a lot about what it means to live missionally.
We also play a game called Camp or Tramp (is this a real ...
Friendship questions are some of the top inquiries we receive at HIMH.
Is it biblical to have a best friend?
At what point does a friendship turn codependent?
What can we do about it?
We cover it with codependency expert, Kelly Needham--someone who loves friendship so much she's writing a book about it. (And if you recognize that last name, it's because she is married to Christian worship artist, Jimmy Needham! A little fact we didn't know until 60 seconds before recording... Our bad.)
We also get real deep into Tinkerbell and the Legend of the Neverbeast talk, as well as play a game calle...
We have two incredible stories for you today:
One is of Kat LaPrairie, who identifies as transgender and experiences attractions toward women. Kat came out as gay after high school and had serial dating relationships with women for a decade. In those years, Kat woke up many nights "gasping for God."
The other story is of a mom, Kathi Bush. Kathi is a clinical therapist and mom to a son who wrestles with gender dysphoria. Kathi shares not only pieces of her journey with her son, but practical ways parents of children wrestling with gender dysphoria can journey alongside them well.
We also to...
Friends: This is a story you 're not going to want to miss. Our guest, Rachel Gilson, wrote an article for Christianity today that was both award-winning and one of the most-read articles of 2017. When you hear her share her story of the gospel's good news for her here, you'll understand why.
The story includes girlfriends, binge drinking, and a stolen copy of Mere Christianity. Rachel also shares about the gospel's right-now good newsiness in her walk with ongoing temptation.
Because we are the HIMH podcast, we naturally discuss the past-tense version of the word, "cheat," the difference ...
Are we all leaders because of social media? How does social media play into the struggle with envy? When does pride get mixed up into that? (And what's the relationship to all of this and self-hatred?)
We explore it with pastor, author, and speaker Adam Barr. We also walk with tauntauns, wampas, (and therefore the relationship between Star Wars and Dr. Seuss), and Matt Krieg brings the Goofball Island game for the first time. Woot!
//: Highlights:
"Prayer and pride are inversely proportional. If one side is high, the other side is low. If one side is low, the other side is high." "
Jesus ...
Dr. Preston Sprinkle is in the house!
We are hitting the New York Times bestseller with all the hard questions: What is your Enneagram number? What's your Hogwarts house? Where did the phrase "kick the bucket" come from?
AFTER ALL OF DAT, we do talk a bit about God's design for gender, premarital sex (what does the Bible say?), and when to speak truth in love.
//: Highlight:
"Our leadership has to be consistently promoting and embodying a counter-cultural way of doing community that is really shocking and life-giving to people... Our current church structures are largely resistant to th...
We have a controversial guest on our podcast today: Rosaria Butterfield.
Some of you may not know why she might be controversial; some of you may write off this podcast forever as a result of our interview.
Give me us minute to explain why we intentionally invited her: The world is increasingly becoming post-Christian. We need other Christians. We need to link arms with other believers (even if we disagree with pieces of what they say) so that the gospel is preached.
If you give this one a chance, you may be surprised at how much you are challenged and how many times you find places of agre...
Did you or do you feel lost in your 20s? Lonely?
Our guest, Drew Boa, asked (and still asks) in his 20s,
"What is my purpose?
Who are my people?
Where do I belong?"
Let's dive into that 20-something lostness, and talk about feeling lost in general. Then, let's explore how we can get anchored.
//: Highlights:
"[The gospel] is still good news for me today because even though I'm married, I have a daughter, and I'm living in beautiful Santa Barbara, I still feel lonely. I still feel the need for the good news that God is with me, and that I have brothers and sisters who can be my friends....
The hearty portion of this week's podcast is all about authenticity and intimacy:
How can we be authentic without over-sharing?
Can pastors/leaders be authentic?
Should they be?
How do emotional, physical, and spiritual intimacy relate to marriage and friendship?
We are very heavy-handed with the goofball part of the show: In a fight between Eleven from Stranger Things and Hermione Granger from Harry Potter, who would win? Would you rather lose your texting ability or have to use dial-up internet forever? Would you rather have terrible dandruff, body odor, or flatulence?
You get it all her...
Eh, boy. Here we go again! Getting vulnerable.
As a follow-up to the now infamous (and most listened-to) Episode 24: Is There Hope for Us?, Matt and I [Laurie] give an update on our marriage's healing journey.
We get really real. We pray you are only blessed by it.
We also talk men's and women's ministries/conferences/retreats and the gifts and drawbacks of them, and I do a HILARIOUS round of Mom Jokes regarding cold weather. (I'm begging you to laugh.)
//: Highlight:
"The problem for me was I knew when we got married ... it was not this erotic, hormone-driven sexual desire. That was not...
Who comes to your mind when you think about mentors or disciple-makers? Who comes to mind when you think about sexual discipleship? Anybody?
Whether or not we realize it, we are discipled by the world. We learn the significance of sex, its importance (or lack thereof), and how to approach it by the world. We need another way.
Our friend and co-laborer in the Kingdom, Dr. Juli Slattery, author, speaker, and podcaster walks us through a beautiful start of this conversation and some highlights in her fantastic new book, Rethinking Sexuality.
We are real, we are gospel-focused, but because we c...
Friends: If you haven't ever listened to our podcast, start here!
We have a special guest, Bill Henson, who is a spirit-filled well of wisdom.
If you are a parent of an LGBT+ child, a Christian leader who wants to be more inclusive (while still holding to a historically Christian view), identify as LGBT+, or simply care about LGBT+ people, this one is for you.
In addition to talking about walking with LGBT+ friends and family, we also talk about the first time we learned we were missionaries, how we listen to music (in the car? at home? at church?), and about an upcoming joint-retreat HIMH ...
It sends terror through all parents: How do we talk with the kids about sexuality?
Yikes. How do we?
We bring our first returning guest, Dr. Branson Parler, Professor of Theological Studies at Kuyper College, and Director of Faith Formation at Fourth Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, MI, to talk about it with us. In addition to his theological cred, he brings real-life walking with his five kids, ages 9, 7, 5, 3, and 1.
What we share here is important ground work, and (I hope) specific next steps.
We also talk about how to talk about Jesus with kids in general, and our favorite childhood s...