Faith Dragon: Recent Episodes
Ethan Dowler
Hello! My name is Ethan Dowler. Faith Dragon is a podcast that aims to help you make the spiritual changes you want to make in your life - and some that you don’t! I love to grow. I love to change. I love to be sanctified and transformed into the person God wants me to be. Join me on this journey of seeking God and asking him to sanctify us to become more like Christ.
Don’t believe in God? Then I hope I can encourage you lean into the idea of faith. Faith in a creator who loves you and wants to have a personal relationship with you.
HEEEYYYOOOOO!!!
We're back, baby.
Today, I want to talk about a technique for change that I've been practicing over the past month or so.
Do the smallest change you can make.
To make big changes in our life, we need to practice those changes. Don't try to eat the entire elephant in one bite! Break down the change into manageable chunks.
Our behavior is born out of the stories we believe about ourselves. Our identity. If we want to change our behavior, we have to change our identity.
FEEDBACK
If you've got a change that you're trying to make this year, or have feedback on the show, I'd love to hear about it!
Email ethan@faithdragon.com
WHAT IS UPPP???!!!
Sorry for missing the last few weeks... But I have a little bit longer episode this week to make up for it!
Today we are talking about media and how what we consume actually changes our thoughts and behaviors.
So much content is thrown at us by the culture and by "the algorithms" that sometimes it's hard to remember that we actually have a choice in what we consume.
They say, "you are what you eat," but how does that apply to media? Let's explore that today!
Scripture Reference
Colossians 3:1-11
"3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all."
Feedback
Send your thoughts, comments, and questions to ethan@faithdragon.com
No episode this week due to Thanksgiving craziness. See you next week with a 10th episode special! I’m planning a collaboration with a good friend of mine - the very same friend who unknowingly started me down the podcasting journey!
Hello, Faith Dragon gang! Today's episode is a little bit special as I dive into some of the big heart lessons that God has taught me over the past 5+ years of being a parent. These lessons are not exclusive to parenting, but I learned them by God working through my kids to reveal something about himself.
Lesson 1
I cannot control anyone else but myself
Lesson 2
My kids are worth being in relationship with RIGHT NOW
Feedback
Please send your comments, questions, and complaints to ethan@faithdragon.com
Is there a difference between belief and faith?
Belief happens in your head when you acknowledge an intellectual fact.
Faith happens in your heart when you lay yourself down before the Lord and submit to his will.
Even when we doubt what God says - like the disciples in today's episode - we can still have faith enough to trust and obey - also like the disciples in today's episode!
Luke 5:1-11
1 On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, 2 and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3 Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4 And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” 6 And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. 7 They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” 11 And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
Change doesn't (usually) happen overnight. It happens in small, incremental changes. If you're waiting for a magical moment when you wake up and are suddenly different, you'll be waiting your entire life.
If you want to change, do something different today than what you've been doing! Just one thing. And when you've got that one thing down (note: this may take a few tries!), do another thing. And then another. Until eventually, you're living out the change you wanted to make.
Today, we look at the parable of the talents to see that God expects us to make something of what he's given us. He will equip us by his spirit, as we learned last week, but we must step out in faith and try!
References
Scripture
Matthew 25:14-30
M Y N E W E M A I L
ethan@faithdragon.com
Send me your feedback and comments. I'd love to start a conversation!
Several months ago, I was approached by a good friend and coworker who gave me the "wounds of a friend" described in Proverbs 27, and I am the better for it.
If you have a close friend that needs the "wounds of a friend," be courageous and trust God's word that says "faithful are the wounds of a friend" by sharing what's on your heart. Like my friend from today's episode, do it with humility and with the best interest of the other person in mind. They will thank you later!
Psalm 27:5-65 Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.
Resources
If you need more tools in your "conversation toolbox," I'd recommend the book Crucial Conversations. It contains principles my team and I use on a daily basis to handle conflict well.
Crucial Conversations book
I am not affiliated with the authors of the book (or Amazon). This stuff just works, so I wanted to pass it along!
Living Through the Spirit Today we talk about living through the Holy Spirit. God calls us to live according to his word, but he does not expect us to do it alone. He has given us the great helper, his Holy Spirit, to accomplish this. We're looking at a passage in Romans that talks about this. If we're going to make the changes we know we need to make, we're going to need the Spirit's sanctifying power!
Romans 8:1-11 1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
WARNING: This episode may contain some RANTING 😁
As a culture, we've lost the Art of Interpersonal Communication.
- What are we losing by being stuck in our phones?
- What could we gain by leaning into awkward moments?
- How much deeper could our relationships be if we spent more time speaking with people?
Don't let your phone be an adult pacifier. Open your mouth and connect with someone this week!
Intro
This podcast was born out of a season that God sent me through where he revealed to me that I was trying to fulfill my healthy, God-given desires with a fantasy. My vice is video games. What's yours?
About a year ago, I decided to sell my personal gaming console, so I could remove that as a temptation to replace God with a fantasy. As Matthew 5:30 says, "if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell."
What is holding you back from living in the Spirit and fulfilling your God-given purpose? Do you need to cut it off?
Homework
Ask God to reveal to you the ways in which you are replacing your real life with a fantasy. Write down what he says!
References
Summary of the movie Ready Player One on IMDb (source)
"In the year 2045, the real world is a harsh place. The only time Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan) truly feels alive is when he escapes to the OASIS, an immersive virtual universe where most of humanity spends their days. In the OASIS, you can go anywhere, do anything, be anyone--the only limits are your own imagination."
Link to the scene in Inception I referred to: video clip (the line I referred to is around the 1:10 mark)
"The dream has become their reality. Who are you to say otherwise?"
Did you know that in his holy word, God describes a creature that sounds a looooot like a dragon?
The biblical name for this create is Leviathan. We read about it in Job 41 when God confronts Job (pronounced "Jobe" like "probe") after he asks God why he was suffering so terribly. I'll just leave it at that and let you discover the rest of the story on your own!
Let's see what God has to say about this terrifying creature!
Today, I explain the core values that make up a "faith dragon" in the context of this podcast. This is not a term you will find in the Bible!
I prayed for a while about what I should name this podcast, and God gave me this name on my drive home from work one day.
Despite just being a fun, cool name, here are the foundational concepts that make up this podcast.
Faith Dragon Core Values
Passive
- Ferocity - I fight for what I believe in. I reject passivity and accept responsibility.
- Wisdom - I submit to God's way of doing things. I trust God and his word.
- Integrity - I do what I say I'm going to do. I'm the same person on and off the stage.
Active
- Speak Life - I breathe encouragement and exhortation onto others. I use my tongue to build others up.
- Be Curious - I ask good questions instead of reacting out of anger. I give others the benefit of the doubt.
- Seek Wise Council - I ask more experienced people for advice. I seek to learn from everyone.
Are you bogged down by all of the things you're "supposed" to do? When's the last time you were truly in awe of something? Do you ever take time to stop and take in the beautiful world around you? You can actually get to know God better if you take the time to experience the child-like awe that so many of us have lost as adults.
As my old friend Judy used to say, "growing old is required; growing up is optional!"
Do you ever doubt that God will show up? Or at the very least, doubt that you heard his voice correctly?
"Was that really him?!" – me, about a million times while working on this podcast
Luckily, God's strength is shown in our weakness, and our doubts don't stop him from working.
It's time to take the first step, doubts and all. God can handle our doubts. He just asks us to trust and obey.
Let's go.
Hello! My name is Ethan Dowler. Faith Dragon is a podcast that aims to help you make the spiritual changes you want to make in your life - and some that you don’t!
I love to grow. I love to change. I love to be transformed into the person God wants me to be.
Join me on a journey of faith by seeking God and asking him to sanctify us to be more like Christ!