Today’s podcast is profound and not for little ears.

When it’s an issue outside of your personal life it may seem very clear to you what you “ought to do.” But when the issue enters your dearest relationships it is much more complex.

Dr. Jeremy Grinnell earned his PhD in Systematic Theology from Calvin Seminary in Grand Rapids, MI, and taught theology at the graduate level for nearly 15 years. He’s the author of The Bellowing of Cain.

With the education of a scholar and the heart of Jesus he takes on your bible questions.

This is what Jeremy helps us understand:

“Our daughter is 25 and transgender. How do you deal with people thinking you are not being Christian for not just accepting her and calling her, her new name?”

“Suffering is presented as an inevitability in life and an intimate connection with Christ. Choosing to walk in intimacy through suffering is so hard. Resentment and surprise/shock seem to be natural responses. My natural response leads to death in so many ways. Why is it so difficult to choose life, intimacy, wisdom, while walking in suffering?”

And Steve, a Perry and Shawna listener asks, “Will heaven stay the same or will it change over time. Will we grow, learn, change, build, create, discover, travel, will it be boring??”

And last, “Does God use the accusations of our conscience and of the enemy to purify us of pride and cause us to more deeply treasure Jesus.” Or are there some things in your life God can’t use to change us for the good?

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With a great big to-do list this Christmas it’s possible to miss the moments and the people that matter most.

Emilie DeYoung is the clinical director of Counseling Services at Winning at Home.

She helps us to see the importance of being present with ourselves, with others and with God this holiday season.

By paying attention to yourself (being kind to yourself), and to God (receiving his love) you can learn to give those you love the most the most precious gift you have to give, your presence!

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Perry admits, “I can’t remember the last time I wept about how much Jesus loves me and how much he loves the world. Like the Grinch, my heart needs to be enlarged.”

Shawna has a high value on being prepared. Before public speaking she spends hours studying, researching, and constructing her message. Over the weekend the person scheduled to speak on Sunday morning fell ill. Shawna, with less than 12 hours of prep, had to stand in and share the message. It was a sacrifice to serve without all the “necessary” preparation. When was the last time you sacrificed for God?

Gospel literally means, “Good news.” The word was stolen by Paul from the Roman Empire. Paul was saying to Rome and to every other ideology up to the present day, “If you think you’ve got good news, yours is not even close to the gospel of Jesus Christ!”

Each of us must come to the place in life where we decide to follow Jesus. And every day thereafter we choose again and again, in a hundred small ways each day, to walk with Jesus.

Though his body and mind were failing in his final days Shawna’s dad was able to recite scripture without hesitation. In one of their last moments together he confidently told Shawna, “The Lord is my shepherd. I have everything I need…” and continued to recite all of Psalm 23.

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