Finding Something Real

Does Everyone Go to Heaven? with Michael McClymond

Happy Wednesday! 

Today on the podcast, we welcome Michael McClymond. He shares about his faith journey as well as his new book. He talks a bit about why the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes played a part in his search for meaning. Then, he chats about Universalism— what it is, why it is a personal topic for him, and the theological consequences of embracing it. 

They also chat a bit about Richard Rohr (one of those who made the Enneagram popular) and his theology, self-oriented spirituality, mental health & social media, and a not-often discussed part of the Gospel message.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

 

About Michael
Michael McClymond is professor of modern Christianity at Saint Louis University and author of The Devil’s Redemption: A New History and Interpretation of Christian Universalism, which was chosen as a winner in The Gospel Coalition’s 2018 book awards. He earned his MDiv from Yale University and PhD in Theology from University of Chicago. He had held teaching or research appointments at Wheaton college, The University of California- San Diego, Emory, Yale, and the Universities of Birmingham in the UK and Berlin in Germany. He has written or edited a dozen volumes that treat Christian theology, North American religion, world Christianity, Comparative religions and Biblical Studies.

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

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FSR November 2023 - Nora’s Intro
FSR November 2023 with Jon
FSR November 2023 with Dr. Ioana
FSR November 2023 with Dr. Amy
FSR October 2023 - Rachel’s Intro
FSR October 2023 with Paul
FSR October 2023 with Doug
FSR October 2023 with Alexis

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Michael McClymond on Academia.edu
The Devil’s Redemption - Michael McClymond
Martyrs, Monks, & Mystics - Michael McClymond

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Orthodoxy & Heterodoxy - Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
The Stranger - Albert Camus
Strange Rites -Tara Burton

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Ian Barclay
Jonathan Edwards
Francis of Assisi
John Wesley
Thomas Aquinas
CS Lewis
JRR Tolkien
Frank Turek
Karl Barth
Rob Bell
Mother Teresa
Billy Graham
Origen
Carl Marx

For the Girl in the Proverbial Back Pew: An Invitation to FSR Listeners

Today, Janell hops on the podcast to share her heart. She shares the story of how Finding Something REAL came to be and her experience going from blogger to podcaster.

Lastly, she shares an invitation to you, the listener. She shares reasons why you may consider becoming a Finding Something REAL Co-Host. In the show notes below, you can find more information.

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.
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To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

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FSR November 2023 - Nora’s Intro
FSR October 2023 - Rachel’s Intro
FSR September 2023 - Alice’s Intro
FSR August 2023 -S Signe’s Intro
FSR May 2023 - Ljuca’s Intro
FSR April 2023 - Gaia’s Intro
FSR March 2023 -Grayce’s Intro

Rethinking the Christmas Story: Hope for the One Who Is Weary with De. Amy Orr-Ewing

Happy Wednesday and Happy (Early) Thanksgiving!

Today, we are pleased to welcome Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing! Dr. Amy shares a her faith journey and a bit about her works as an apologist. She also shares about her new book, Mary’s Voice, and why she started researching Mary. She and Janell discuss the significance of Mary in the Christmas story and the significance of women in the Christmas story.

They also discuss a few of Nora’s questions about suffering and how different worldviews view suffering and speak about the Bible as truth and the inspired word of God.

We hope you enjoy!

About Dr. Amy
Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing is an international author, speaker and theologian who addresses the deep questions of our day with meaningful answers found in the Christian Faith. She is the author of multiple books including ‘Where is God in All the Suffering?’ and bestselling, ‘Why Trust the Bible?’ Over the last twenty years, Amy has given talks and answered questions on university campuses around the world. She has also addressed Parliamentarians in the Speakers Rooms and Chapel at the UK Parliament and staffers on Capitol Hill, and at the West Wing of The White House. She regularly responds to invitations to speak in banks, businesses, and consultancy firms as well as churches and conferences. Amy is interested in the intersection of questions of meaning and faith with the marketplace, education and policymaking. Amy holds a doctorate in Theology from the University of Oxford. She enjoys broadcasting in the media and giving public lectures. Amy is also the co-founder of REBOOT, an innovative youth initiative aimed at helping teenagers think deeply about faith, which now runs in countries all over the world. Amy lives in Oxford with her husband ‘Frog’. They have three boys, JJ, Zach and Benji. 

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

FSR November 2023 - Nora’s Intro
FSR November 2023 with Jon
FSR November 2023 with Dr. Ioana

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Dr. Amy’s website
Dr. Amy’s YouTube
Dr. Amy’s Instagram
Mary's Voice - Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing
Where is God in All the Suffering? - Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing
Why Trust the Bible? - Dr. Amy Orr-Ewing

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YWAM

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Galatians 6:9
And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart

Romans 8

 

Shifting Our Awareness- Fixing Eyes on Jesus with Dr. Ioana Popa

It’s Wednesday! 

Today on the podcast, we welcome Dr. Ioana Popa to address Nora’s question about how mental health disorders fit inside the Christian worldview. Dr. Ioana shares about growing up in Romania, her experience considering herself atheist, and how she was still skeptical after the resurgence of Christianity after the fall of communism. She shares how her prayers as a curious nonbeliever were answered by God.

Dr. Ioana shares about Christ, sin, and epigenetics (what is pass on via genetics and generations). She also discusses the importance of taking the stigma out of mental health issues, how our bodies and our souls are intricately designed to work together, and the biopsychosocial approach to our mental health. Dr. Ioana shares about how we can hold onto truth, letting the gray things pass, and how we should view our identity. There is also talk about how our thoughts and feelings are intertwined, how and why contemplation and mindfulness can keep us from overthinking, how our different experiences do not define us, and so much more. 

We hope you enjoy this episode!

Disclaimer from Dr. Ioana:
All information provided in this conversation is strictly for educational purposes and does not represent medical advice, nor form a physician-patient or coach/consultant-client relationship.   All information is provided as is,  and is used at your own risk.  Please speak to your medical provider or providers before about any information you hear in this show/episode.

About Dr. Ioana
As a Christian Spiritual Formation Life Coach & Trainer, Dr. Ioana coaches Professional Christian Women to regenerate on-the-go, move from burnout to joy, from grief to hope and to grow psychologically & spiritually in Christ, so that they can use and multiplying all their God given gifts to impact the world for the glory of God, and she does that through online courses, one to one coaching and her unique community program for Christian Women.

She is trained as a physician-psychiatrist, therapist, educator, nationally board certified life coach, spiritual care provider and theologian, and brings a unique, holistic and integrated perspective of science, psychology, spiritual care and Christian Faith. Her parish is St. Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church in Cambridge MA.

On a personal note, Dr. Ioana loves to spend time with her husband and their 4 children, family and friends, and to read, garden, pray, exercise and practice contemplation.You can find her on Youtube, website and FB - search for Team For The Soul, Dr Ioana Popa

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

FSR November 2023 - Nora’s Intro
FSR November 2023 with Jon
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Team For The Soul
Dr. Ioana Popa's Youtube

Biopsychosocial model

The Genius Zone - Gay Hendricks

Tony Robbins 

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Jeremiah 29:13
 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Romans 3:23
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
2 Cirinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Philippians 4:6-7
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Hebrews 12:2-3
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Suicide, God, & Knowing You’re Not Alone with Jon Noyes

Happy Wednesday! 
Note: This episode speaks about mental health struggles and suicide

Happy Wednesday All! Today, we welcome back Jon Noyes. He speaks about the current lack of talk about mental health and suicide in churches, why he thinks churches shy away from the topic, and why they desperately need to speak about mental health.

Jon also shares some statistics about suicide and the prevalence of hopelessness in our culture. Later, Jon reminds us that there is hope in Christ. He shares the Gospel, Biblical accounts where people in the Bible continued through trials, the meaning of life, and what can be helpful to those who are considering suicide.

We hope you are edified by this episode. 

 

About Jonathan
Jonathan has worked as a speaker with Stand to Reason since 2019. A former atheist, Jonathan used to think belief in God was unwarranted and irresponsible. Then, after examining the evidence for Christianity he was faced with the fact that Jesus is who He says He is and the Christian worldview tells the true story of reality. Since then Jon has been passionate about engaging the culture with honest, well thought-out reasons why people should trust the Christian worldview. Jon has developed a series of passionate talks to do just that.

In 2013 Jonathan earned a master’s degree in Christian Apologetics from Biola University, graduating with honors. Jon brings a unique perspective to his audiences and the Stand to Reason team, having more than ten years' experience in the legal field and serving more than five as a pastor in his local church. Jon also serves on the board of directors for Life Without Limbs and at Beacon Hill Classical Academy, where he teaches discipleship.

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

Suicide prevention hotline: 988
Crisis Text Line: Text “Home” to 741741

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FSR November 2023 - Nora’s Intro
FSR November 2023 with Jon
FSR June 2023 with Abdu

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STR.org
Jon Noyes + STR
To The Point LIVE with Jon Noyes: Suicide

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Foxe’s Book of Martyrs - John Foxe
Reality Student Conference 
Summit Ministries

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13 Reasons Why

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Augustine
John Stonestreet
Bonhoeffer 

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Exodus 20:3
“You shall not murder.”

Psalm 103:12
as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Psalm 130
1 Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
2     Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
    to my cry for mercy.
3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
    Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness,
    so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
6 I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.
7 Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
    for with the Lord is unfailing love
    and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
    from all their sins.

Romans 3:23
”for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
Romans 8:38-39
”For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
 “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;  you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
2 Corinthians 4:17
”For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”

How does God’s love reach into mental suffering, anxiety, and depression?

Hello! Happy Wednesday! 

Today, we are delighted to introduce Nora from Sweden. Nora shares about her upbringing in Sweden, her love for creative outlets, and what she experienced growing up. Nora shares her faith journey, her experience coming to Christ in a secularized country, and talks a bit about her experiences with hopelessness and anxiety. She also shares about a few of her faith questions including: 

 

• Why does God allow suffering? How does it fit into his plan?

• How can a God who accepts everyone and forgives sin send some people to hell?

• If our end goal is heaven, what’s the purpose of life?

We hope this episode is thought provoking and edifying.

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

Finding Something REAL on Instagram
FSR: Dec 2020 Christmas episode
FSR: Aug 2020 with Esther Littlefield
FSR: April 2023 with Zach Verrett

Where is God in all the Suffering? - Amy Orr-Ewing
The Hiding Place - Corrie Ten Boom
Tim Keller sermon on grace (2011)

Can anyone be more loving than God? with Alexis Zanias

Happy Wednesday! 

This week, we are releasing an episode with Rachel and today’s guest— Alexis Zanias. Alexis shares about her faith journey, her love for educating students, and her love of questions and research. She talks about embracing the unknown, the importance of truth, and the importance of definitions. They chat about the five things that defined Christians in ancient Rome, the importance of biblical authority, and common criticisms against Biblical authority.  They also chat about deciphering what may be the voice of God wand what may be our own voice. 

We hope you enjoy!

 

About Alexis
Alexis Zanias grew up near Allentown PA.  She attended Grove City College, where she received a degree in Biology/Secondary Education.  Lexi has her Masters in Environmental Science Education from Montreat College in NC.  For the past 14 years, she has been a secondary high school science and Bible/apologetics teacher in Asheville NC.  Before that she taught in Fort Lauderdale, FL and worked at Black Forest Academy, a boarding school for missionary kids in Germany.  

When she has a break from teaching during the school year, Lexi loves to fill up her summers.  She worked with Summit Ministries for 9 summers at Student Conferences in TN, CA, PA and GA.  Lexi currently works in the summers for MAVEN as a field guide on their Immersive Experiences.  She loves spending time with Jesus, good discussions, Ultimate Frisbee, Lady Grey Tea, deep laughter and digging into good books.  

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here! If you are interested in supporting the Finding Something REAL fundraising campaign, you can head to the webpage and click on the orange donate button.

To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

• FSR October 2023 - Rachel’s Intro
• FSR October 2023 - with Paul Copan
• Maventruth.org
• Rosaria Butterfield
• Jesus Revolution Movie 
• Midnight Mass - Netflix miniseries

Romans 5:8
”…But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 10:9
”…If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Ephesians 2:10
”For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Spiritual Stuff You Don’t Want To Mess Around With with Douglas Groothuis

Happy Wednesday! We have a jam packed episode for you today! 

We are pleased to welcome Douglas Groothuis! Doug shares about his faith journey and how he became interested in philosophy and Christian apologetics. He also shares about his personal experiences with suffering and how it fits with the Christian worldview. 

He and Janell then start chatting about the New Age. They define and discuss divination, the reality of spiritual things, and the deception of the devil. He also defines New Age and speaks about Richard Rohr’s New Age worldview. They also talk about personal spiritual experiences and testing spiritual experiences. Lastly, they chat about the person of Jesus Christ, the importance of a historical belief in Jesus, and more!

We hope you enjoy! 

 

About Douglas
Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary since 1993, author of 19 books, Dr. Douglas Groothuis has fire in his bones for the Christian message and many irons in the fire to explain, defend, and apply it. He has been explaining the world to the church and explaining the church to the world for nearly fifty years through his teaching, preaching, writing, mentoring, and general witness. His passion is to take to the streets the truth and significance of the Christian worldview for all of life. To that end, he publishes both academic and popular works, preaches in churches, gives public lectures, engages in debates, and has appeared on hundreds of radio programs and podcasts since 1983. He is known as a knowledgeable, sharp, forceful, but gentle communicator of the Christian message.

 

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We would love to thank our Patrons for all their amazing support! To learn more about supporting Finding Something REAL via Patreon, click here!
To learn more about Faithful Counseling and if it is a good fit for you, you can click here!
If you would like to receive Janell’s 7 Deep Faith Questions resource click here!

FSR October 2023 - Rachel’s Intro
FSR October 2023 - with Paul Copan

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• Douglas’s Website
• Truth Tribe with Douglas Groothuis
• Randal Rauser & Doug Groothuis - Is Progressive Christianity a false Gospel?
• Douglas’ critique of Richard Rohr's book, "The Universal Christ"
• Christian Apologetics - Doug Groothuis
• World Religions in 7 Sentences - Douglas Groothuis
• Unmasking the New Age - Douglas Groothuis
• Confronting the New Age - Douglas Groothuis

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• Exorcisms: The World's Leading Psychiatric Authority Speaks Out - Sean McDowell Podcast
• The Christian Podcaster - The Official Christian Podcaster’s Association podcast
• I have decided to follow Jesus - Elevation Worship-

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• Walking with God through Pain & Suffering - Tim Keller
• Evidence that Demands a Verdict - Josh & Sean McDowell
• Encyclopedia of Biblical Difficulties - Gleason Archer
• Kingdom of the Cults - Walter Martin

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• Sharon Beekman
• Here's Why Christians Should Avoid the Teachings of Richard Rohr

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• Psalm 39
• Psalm 88
• Matthew 7:13 -14
• Matthew 28
• John 1:1-18
• John 8:31 - 32
• John 14:6
• Romans 8
• 2 Corinthians 11:13 - 14
• 1 Peter 3:15
• 1 John 1
• 1 John 4