Combating Depravity: Recent Episodes
Jose L. Hernandez
What are the struggles that men face every day? The need to provide for our Families, our worry over Finances, the importance of Fitness. What about the friends we keep, and the future we plan for? What’s up guys Riley Myers and Jose Hernandez are going to discuss how viewing life through a biblical lens can effectively shape us to be the best version of ourselves! Our goal with this podcast is to explore the battles we as men face on a daily basis and the importance of equipping ourselves with the Word of God! Welcome to Combating Depravity
As believers, our lifeline is the Word. We go to it for answers, guidance, and basically anything we need. So what happens when things don't seem to add up in the Scripture? 0r maybe worse; someone deliberately twists and uses Scripture out of context to manipulate you? The answer lies within the question; if we know The Word, we can't be mis-informed or confused! Jesus was tempted by the devil WITH Scripture, but more importantly he refuted it with Scripture. Tune in as we discuss the importance of truly knowing the word and how dangerous Scripture out of context can be.
We don't like to think about spiritual warfare. We want it to go away. It can scare us, isolate us, paralyze us, and ultimately render us completely useless as disciples for the Kingdom. As believers, we would like to believe that Jesus is going to fight all of our battles for us. The funny part is, He will! All we have to do is show up, but often we're too stuck to even do that. Tune in as we take a surface level look at the enemy and his tactics
God has given women the honor, responsibility, and the blessing of bringing human life into this world. In a society that often downplays this incredibly magnificent task, we want to take an episode to thank our mothers and bring to light all the wonderful things they've done for us. Make sure to tune in, and don't forget to call your mom!
Jesus tells us in Matthew that the Kingdom of Heaven is near, and 1 Thessalonians tells us the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. But what does that mean to us? Instead of scaring us, it should motivate us to live each day on mission, fulfilling the purpose God instilled in our hearts; to preach the Good News to all of the nations of the Earth. Listen in as we discuss how to live with urgency and purpose in uncertain times.
It's often difficult to discern God's plan from our own. Our own desires can cloud our perception of "God's plan" and cause us to walk down paths that were never meant for us. We were given free will to make our own decisions, so there is not ONE plan that God has for us. Rather, it's His will that we must search the Scriptures to find, and follow.
For a true tug of war to take place, you need tension on both ends of the rope. Too often, we try to hold to many ropes, or hold ropes we were never intended to hold in the first place. We hold onto things that are keeping great tension in our lives because we think we need them, when in reality, they are pulling us farther from God's path and plan.
Easter Sunday is one of the most attended services at every church each year. But why? It's not chocolate eggs and bunnies, if that's what you're thinking. Lots of people likely don't understand the importance of the Easter message and what this truly means for Christians. Tune in as we dive into the true meaning of Easter.
Joy is an inner feeling. Happiness is an outward expression. Joy is possible when happiness is not present. Paul tells us in Phillipians that he found the key to true contentment while locked in a prison cell. Tune in as we discuss how to find and choose joy in the toughest of situations.
The pressures we as men face are never ending! Being close to God doesn't take them away, but he does offer us a way to handle them. Society will give us many reasons to question our abilities as men; to provide. To provide financially, emotionally, protection, etc. The list seems never ending. How we approach the pressures of life has a lot to do with how close we are to God. Here we discuss the importance of turning to God and the word when facing the pressures of life.
Catch & release is a term commonly used by fisherman when the fish is either too small, too large, protected, out of season, or population management. We can draw similarities from this term to our own emotions. If we catch them and don't release, there will be consequences. We need a healthy understanding of processing and releasing emotion, and filling that space with biblical truth.
The Word tells us that troubles WILL come our way, not might; and we are to consider it an opportunity for joy when they do. This seems rather counter-intuitive to our initial response to adversity. But if we learn to face our struggles head on and find solutions through them, we can become far more effective in every facet of our lives.
Worth is relative to the value you place on something. The more valuable it is to you, the more you're willing to pay. Jesus paid the ultimate price for us showing our eternity has great worth. Following in His footsteps could mean us losing everything, but gaining what's truly important.
"Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor..." There is not one article of the armor that is more important than the other, and they do not have the same effect standing on their own. You need the shield to protect your front, your community to protect your back, the sword of the spirit to go on the offensive, and the helmet of salvation to remind you of your security in Christ. Listen as we wrap up our three part discussion on the armor of God.
Ephesians 6: 10-18
The belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness are two very foundational and important pieces to the armor of God. Without truth, we have no standard, and therefore cannot begin to understand how we have righteousness we haven't earned. Tune is as we continue to unpack the armor of God.
The armor of God is one of the most important passages of Scripture that we can understand. Knowing the different pieces and how they fit together is crucial to our defense against the attacks of the enemy. But before we can protect ourselves, we have to recognize what the attacks look like, and understand that we are in a battle in the first place. Tune in as we discuss the armor of God, part 1.
The temptations we face are not uncommon to humanity. Facing them alone is one of the hardest things we can do, and it's also how the enemy keeps us in isolation and far from God's purpose for our lives. Tune in as we discuss how community and a true understanding of The Word can make those temptations a little easier to handle.
Why is obedience so important to God? As long as we believe in Jesus to forgive us of our sins, does it really matter what we do afterwards? We are called to be not only hearers of the Word but doers of the Word. This means we need to be reaching people and showing them the love of Christ with the way that we live. Tune in as we discuss the ways we can respect and honor God with our lives, and how a true saving faith can change the trajectory of your life.
Be a man! Most of us guys have heard that before. Whether it was a skinned knee or a broken leg, an uncle or grandpa would say "rub some dirt on it, be a man." While the recollection can be comical, it's not easy to deny the impact those conversations and influences have had on our lives and the way we think and act. We tend to lean toward "manning up" rather than dealing with a situation from a better or biblical standpoint. Tune in as we discuss what it truly means to lead your home spiritually and how to become the man/father/husband God intended you to be.
What are you doing today that's getting you closer to your goals? The unfortunate answer is probably nothing. We put things off to the next day, next Monday, even next year. Let's actually make a change this year that is real. Let's tie an actual goal to a date, create an end goal and a finish line so we know what we are facing. If you keep telling yourself that "one day" you are going to do something, it will stay there. There are seven days in a week and not one is called one day.
New Year, new me; right? Probably not. We always have a thousand different resolutions for the new year and how this year will be better. We're going to get in shape, get a promotion, buy that car, new house, etc. But let's face it, by March or April, we're already ready to throw in the towel to the next year. Even more so when it comes to our faith and spiritual walk. But we have to stay grounded in the fact that no matter what changes, our God never will.
Disappointment comes from us experiencing an unmet expectation. It can cause anger, frustration and disappointment. God wants us to go to him with the good and the bad. We many times deal with the bad on our own because of the situation. We can assure you that God wants the bad as well. He can handle it. Trust in God and let him handle the situation. I assure you that his plans are better than ours. Riley was out sick, so I got to speak on a topic that all of us can relate to.
"Don't you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?" This verse can often intimidate us into trying to live up to perfect physical standards in unhealthy ways, or cause us to feel convicted of our current physical state. Meanwhile, that couldn't be further from the message that's being portrayed. God sent his only son to die for us on a cross so that we could have everlasting life, and he gave us the incredible honor of sharing that news with others while we are still on this earth. So why wouldn't we want our bodies to be in tip-top condition, physically, mentally, etc. to carry out the mission that Jesus has called us to do.
Let's face it. Marriage is hard. You know what's harder, though? Divorce. I've heard it said that date nights are cheaper than marriage counseling. While slightly comical, it's hard to deny the truth in that statement. But why should we date? We're already married?! Take a seat as our beautiful guest speaker (Tori) and Riley dive into the realm of dating your spouse and preventing burnout.
Happy Thanksgiving! During this time of year it is important to realize the things we should be thankful for. Let us not forget the greatest blessing we have received, which is the love and salvation from Jesus Christ. Let us exemplify our gratefulness for him as we live our lives and spend the holidays together.
This world is full of trials and tribulation, this is promised in the Word. But with God at the center, we can learn how to handle the blows and roll with the punches. Tune in and discover how life can be lived to the fullest when we center God in all parts of our lives.
So Riley is out this week for his birthday, and I get to have a guest speaker. I am honored to share the mic with my beautiful wife, Christine, as we dive into what marriage is and how our relationship has evolved over the years, especially when we brought God back into it. Let's talk what a biblical marriage is, and what our roles should look like.
Life is not about if hard times come, but when. "The storms of life are easier to maneuver when we know that God is in the boat with us. It doesn't make the storm go away, just makes sure the boat doesn't sink." This was said by a man that is in the middle of the war zone in Ukraine. The Bible says that "when" we face hard times, not if. Here, we have a conversation on the idea of how we can choose joy in our circumstances.
I've always heard don't take advice from someone who has a life you don't want. We have so many different areas to get information in this day and age, and often times it's the wrong place. We focus on our feelings and other's opinions, and then wonder why our life doesn't look like we want it to. Let's dive into the necessity of building a life centered around and built on a foundation of biblical truth.
Jesus tells his disciples that if they were to have faith as small as a mustard seed, mountains would move. This gives us such a clear picture of that power of faith. We often get caught up in the craziness of this world and allow our circumstances to define our faith. We should make our faith define our circumstances, because I promise you that our God is bigger. Join us as we discuss the life changing impact that a true faith can have
We live in a fallen world. God is sovereign, but he has given us free will and the ability to make our own choices. The bad news is, that most of these choices are hard. It's hard to be fit, but it's also hard to be overweight. It's hard to have a job, but it's also hard to have no money. Life is hard, and the choices we are presented with are even harder. Let's discuss how a biblical mindset can positively affect the choices we make and allow us to live the best life God intends for us.
Being faithful doesn't make things easy, it makes things possible. Listen to a conversation of a literal storm that we just went through. Hurricane Ian just ripped through Florida and left a wake of destruction we we get to discuss the importance of perspective and faith during the storms that we go through life.
Are you serving at your church? As believers, we are called to serve and be a part of a local church, but sometimes life can get in the way and we convince ourselves we have better things to do. Is it necessary? Do we have to do it? Let's discuss the importance of being connected to a body of believers in a local church.
Sex is great! And thats the way God intended it to be, in the right context. Sexual immorality is a societal norm, but as we walk with Christ, we must be brave enough to stand up to the pressure. Tune in as we discuss how the Bible views sex, and what we can do as Christians to make this hard topic a little more simple.
Dating (the right way) in this fallen world is getting progressively more difficult. Temptation, lust, and immorality is marketed and promoted at every turn, and society eats it up. From sex to marriage to divorce and more, join us as we dive into this challenging topic of biblical dating.
We've said often that our kids are our first ministry. We are called to be role models and train up our children in the way they should go, but how often do we get caught up in the comparison of seeing those on missions trips, pastoral ministry, or other more "hands-on" serving situations. Join us as we discuss the importance of instilling the truth of the Bible in our children and teaching them the foundational truths of Scripture at an early age.
Pride is something that we all struggle with, whether you are too proud to admit it or not! Pun intended. It can corrupt your character and cause serious damage if not dealt with accordingly. Join us as we take a biblical look at pride.
It seems so easy to say "Trust in God" but how difficult is it to actually do it? Learning that we need to put God first in all our decisions is extremly difficult, especially if you are a baby believer, but trust me that once you understand it you will do it more. We clearly can't do it all alone, so why not put our trust in the only one who can. I promise you if you try you will see a change.
Worry is something that likely plagues most of us every day. We worry about our bills, health, spouse, kids, projects, etc. And then we worry more because we're worried! It has infiltrated almost every area of our lives, which is why the enemy uses it so often to cause paralysis and doubt in our actions. This is why we want to shed some light on this very popular topic, and see what The Word can tell us about worrying.
One of the more difficult topics to discuss with people is that when it comes to our finances. But what does God have to say about it. Does it have to be 10%? Should we be happy that we are giving our hard earned money away? What should you expect when giving money to God? Lets discuss the topic of tithing and how the bible says we should approach it.
Wow! here we have an open discussion with 6 of us. How does accountability look within your own community. Can you go to a friend in private that needs to hear something? Can you hear something from a friend that makes your feel uncomfortable? Lets talk community.
Are you quick to anger or slow? Anger is something that affects us all, how we approach it can make all the difference in the world. Did Jesus ever get angry? Can you pause for 2 seconds to take control of the situation? This was a great conversation on anger.
Do you understand the difference from drinking and drunkenness? What company do you keep when having a drink? What are the consequences in this life and the next for drunkenness? Here we discuss what the word says about having a drink. Bottoms up?
God wants your whole life, so how much do you give to him? We battle with the condemnation of how much time do we spend in the word, but what does God really want from us. Why do you read the word? Lets discuss how we approach the word differently.
The word Freedom is a bit of a buzzword, but what does Freedom actually mean? How does God want us to be free. Freedom from sin is where we find Christ, but it won't be easy. You have to fight for your freedom every single day.
Our relationship with God can be one of the most difficult things to maintain, especially in this instant gratification world. We want answers, advice, guidance, and we want it now! And when it doesn't come "now", we want to question or doubt God. Join as we discuss what it looks like to seek God daily and what it looks like to delight yourself in the Lord. Plus, one of our hosts will give a personal testimony!
Our time is possibly the most important resource we have, yet we don't tend to make the most of it, or at least have issues prioritizing what is most important. What do you spend your time on? What a great conversation with Pastor Eddie on focusing on what is right and the importance of now.
Our conversation continues with Dr. Hunter on Apologetics and defending our faith in a world that wants to push it away. If you haven't listened to the first one, it is highly recommended. What an amazing conversation with this a man that has dedicated his life to the lord and helping others get closer to God. Thank you Dr. Hunter for your time.
What an amazing conversation with Dr. Hunter about defending our faith. This topic is especially important in todays world. Being able to stand confident in our faith in a world that is constantly trying to push it away allows us to not only possibly be able to bring someone closer to God, but to also grow in our own faith.
The world is full of shiny things to distract us and take our focus from the things that are really important. How do we live for eternity in a world that is catered to the present?
We tend to think of discipline as a negative word. Like always getting into trouble. But, what if we could see the freedom that discipline brings to our lives. How does the discipline that God wants from us, give us the life that he wants for us.
Something we don't want to do, Something we don't like to do, Something that isn't easy to do, but the bible says we should. What is so important about fasting? Let's take a look at what the Bible says about fasting and the importance of it.
Thank you to our Moms and our Wives the mother of our kids. We all came from a mom. Lets give them the glory and appreciation that comes with all that they do.
What we take in we put out. Such a great subject. Here we discuss the importance of watching what we listen to and what we are watching. Doesn't mean you can't enjoy things, just keep track of what you are taking in.
Grace is God giving us something we do not deserve, and Mercy is God not giving us something we do deserve. Two very special words, but you need to make sure you understand them with context to make sure we are applying and understanding them correctly.
Our faith is based on Jesus's resurrection. He beat death and took our sin so we can have a seat in heaven. Make sure you remember year round, what Easter really means.
Do you rush to clean the house right before someone comes to visit? Are you a check box christian at church, but your real life doesn't reflect it. Here is a great conversation about how many of us can be a check box christian.
Something that effects us all and the enemy uses quite frequently is the desires of the flesh. Lusting is a difficult thing to talk about but something we can all relate to. Lets talk about the dangers of it and who can we lust for.
Many of us have been Church Hurt, but was it really the Church? We give so much power to other people that many of us have allowed a moment with a person to push us a way from the church or worse God. Here we discuss some of our own experiences that we have dealt with Church Hurt.
Here we have the opportunity to discuss with Mr. John Ferro about how God Still moves today. Many of us struggle with our ability to see God move today, but maybe it is because we have a certain expectation of what we want to see. What a great discussion with John about how we need to listen more and dig into the word. What a great conversation.
We men have to stop being pickle jars and open up. What a great discussion the importance of opening up and community we as men really need. Lets build each other up and see how much easier this life can become.
Our fitness is something that we as men can sometimes take for granted, but what does the word say about fitness and our bodies. Lets discuss our own journey in fitness and false promises and what the word says about these things as well.
The people we surround ourselves with on a daily basis have a huge part of hour our lives turn out. They either make us better or worse. As men we need to realize that, we need biblical men to help us be better men. The bible says in Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpens Iron, and one man sharpens another. Here I get the honor of speaking with my best friend about this importance and how it shapes our lives.
We tie our work to our identity so much that sometimes we can forget that it is in God in which we identify. Listen to how we take scripture and discuss our work vs the Works we were designed for.
We definitly went over our time on this one, but what a topic to run over on. This is the reason we are doing this podcast. To bring awareness to the word and the Good News.
Today we had the honor of interview Pastor Eddie, the lead location Pastor at Action Church, Winter Park. This podcast started as a branch of his vision of a 1000 man army. The importance of a biblical man in todays society and his epic testimony. You are in for a real treat.