What if your understanding of faith could shift from a vague belief to a deeply transformative relationship with Jesus? In this episode of the Death to Life podcast, our guest Schuyler shares his journey from a theologically mixed upbringing in mainstream Christianity and Christian Science to a profound encounter with Christ in his early 20s. This encounter reshaped his battles with sin and ignited his spiritual growth.
We explore how personal experiences influence our grasp of spiritual truths, sharing insights from my wife Grace's faith journey and the importance of being spiritually open. We discuss Jesus's radical mercy and forgiveness, even in the face of grave injustice, and how this inspires us to practice kindness in our lives. As Grace and I prepare for parenthood, we reflect on the duties of relationships and parenting. Schuyler’s testimony and a touching exchange with another guest highlight the profound impact of faith and spiritual family. Join us to be moved by Schuyler's story for a deeper experience.
0:00 - From Death to Life
16:09 - Power of the Gospel
28:11 - Journey of Faith in Relationship
34:35 - Discovering Identity and Grace Through Love
40:30 - Testimony of Grace and Blessings
💰 DONATE & SUPPORT our Ministry: lovereality.org/give
👍 LIKE us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alovereality
📷 FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riyoung31/
📚 LEARN more at our site: lovereality.org
Looking for discipleship and fellowship? Join a Circle at lovereality.org/circles
What if your understanding of faith could shift from a vague belief to a deeply transformative relationship with Jesus? In this episode of the Death to Life podcast, our guest Schuyler shares his journey from a theologically mixed upbringing in mainstream Christianity and Christian Science to a profound encounter with Christ in his early 20s. This encounter reshaped his battles with sin and ignited his spiritual growth.
We explore how personal experiences influence our grasp of spiritual truths, sharing insights from my wife Grace's faith journey and the importance of being spiritually open. We discuss Jesus's radical mercy and forgiveness, even in the face of grave injustice, and how this inspires us to practice kindness in our lives. As Grace and I prepare for parenthood, we reflect on the duties of relationships and parenting. Schuyler’s testimony and a touching exchange with another guest highlight the profound impact of faith and spiritual family. Join us to be moved by Schuyler's story for a deeper experience.
0:00 - From Death to Life
16:09 - Power of the Gospel
28:11 - Journey of Faith in Relationship
34:35 - Discovering Identity and Grace Through Love
40:30 - Testimony of Grace and Blessings
💰 DONATE & SUPPORT our Ministry: lovereality.org/give
👍 LIKE us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alovereality
📷 FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riyoung31/
📚 LEARN more at our site: lovereality.org
Looking for discipleship and fellowship? Join a Circle at lovereality.org/circles
The world doesn't think that the gospel can change your life, but we know that it can and that's why we want you to hear these stories, stories of transformation, stories of freedom, people getting free from sin and healed from sin because of Jesus. This is Death to Life.
Speaker 2:I didn't make a decision in my own strength, my own willpower, like I hereby resolve to stop watching pornography, right. But what happened was that I became so interested in Jesus, in Jesus, and it was like a flame was lit in my heart of realization that, wow, jesus. Jesus came not just to forgive me from sin, but to free me from it, to fill me with his spirit so that I can walk free from it To the maximum extent possible for the rest of my life, and to help me to live this incredible adventure of life that is so much more than just a struggle to not sin, but it's a journey of walking with him and living a powerful life of impact. And that caused me to fall in love with Jesus in a way that I never had before in my life.
Speaker 1:Yo, welcome to the Death to Life podcast. It's your boy. This episode is with Skylar and it might be one of the shorter ones we've had the shortest probably but if you're looking for bang for your gospel, buck ooh, dense heavy. And Skylar is a man of God and his life lived has been such a blessing to me and this story is awesome and just how he talks about the gospel is awesome, and so you're going to be blessed. No doubt this is Skylar. Let's listen in love. Y'all appreciate, y'all buckle up and strap in. So, skylar, I've been watching you from afar for I don't know how many years maybe three years, I don't know, could be like somewhere around three years and then we got to meet in person I don't know how long ago that was maybe two months ago and, man, just been impressed and just blessed by your life and I was like man, I got to know where this guy's coming from. So where does it start, man? Where are you taking us?
Speaker 2:Where does it start and where are we going? Well, I was thinking about that yesterday. I'm just asking for the Lord's guidance for how to best convey my journey and I would say there's kind of two stages to my journey. So stage one was discovering my need for Jesus and stage two was discovering who I am now that Christ is in me. So I grew up in a pretty awesome family. Parents loved each other, stayed together, really extremely blessed, and I'm realizing that more and more now that I'm an adult, like how much my parents did for me and that's amazing theologically ambiguous environment, because my mom was fairly mainstream Christian, evangelical Christian, and my dad was a Christian scientist and not Scientology. Many people get those conflated. But Christian scientists and there's some theological challenges there with Christian science. Did you read a lot of?
Speaker 1:Emmett Fox, not that.
Speaker 2:I know of, but the challenge for me, specifically, was that who exactly Jesus was and why exactly he came was unclear. So so there were two very different narratives, two very different senses of his identity. So I grew up believing in god, but not really knowing who this jesus guy was for sure, and so what that meant was that I came into adulthood, like into my early 20s, with this sort of vague label of christian. I was like, oh yeah, I'm a Christian, I try to be a good person, all this stuff, but not really a clear sense of what the gospel actually was, and so I had to have a moment of awakening. My first moment of awakening was in my early 20s, when God challenged me, and he essentially challenged me with something like these words you can believe whatever you want, but you can't say that you believe the Bible and then believe things that the Bible doesn't say. So what I had to come to terms with was I had this sense of Jesus from some of the Christian science background that I had experienced growing up.
Speaker 2:I had this sense of Jesus from some of the Christian science background that I had experienced growing up. I had this sense that Jesus was a great teacher and great sort of spiritual leader and all this stuff. But I wasn't really on board with the word become flesh. In him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily right. The God incarnate come to shed his blood for the sins of the world. Hadn't really gotten on board that train and so God walked me through some of those verses and I think I had ears to hear the gospel for the first time at that stage of my life and so chose to get baptized as an adult, and that was, I would say, stage one was okay, I believe the Bible and I'm going to follow where the Bible leads.
Speaker 1:Let me ask you this man yeah, christian science, and what I said to Emmett Fox is there's this book called the Sermon on the Mount and it's really super in-depth and it's a Christian scientist, but he goes into it and it's more like Jesus is actually doing this teaching. He's subverting this idea and it takes away like the spirit, and now that you're saying this, it starts to make sense. And then there's also this belief about not going to doctors. Yeah, did you get? It's like you had half of your.
Speaker 2:The side of your family was like that, and then the other half is just yeah, my, my parents went to different churches and, like I said, I owe credit to them for staying together and loving one another and raising me well, because they went to different churches and had very different ideas about who jesus was and what happens when we die and all that kind of stuff. But, yeah, there is a strong focus on spiritual healing in christian science, which, to be fair, there's a strong focus on healing in Christianity, but they take it in a little bit of a different direction and they do it from a standpoint of the supremacy of the spiritual world over the material world, to the point that even the material world doesn't exist. And who exactly?
Speaker 1:They're like faithlessness if you visit a doctor or something like that.
Speaker 2:That's. It's not formally stated from the organizational church, but some individual people do see it that way.
Speaker 1:Okay, we don't have to talk about that. That just was interesting to me because that's all I really know about Christians. I've never met someone who has that background.
Speaker 2:Right. Like I said, the main issue for me was figuring out who Jesus was, because Christian science there's another book that the founder of christian science wrote and they don't believe that jesus was god in the flesh. They don't believe that the main reason that he you know the central element of his coming was to shed his blood for the forgiveness of sins, and so I didn't really need really have this strong sense that I particularly needed to be forgiven until that's like 1 John 1 encapsulated.
Speaker 1:The whole idea of 1 John 1 is that Jesus did not come in the flesh. John is writing this sometimes. Someone said he's not writing this to believers. He was referencing these Gnostic heresies that Jesus came as a wraith or a ghost, or, and then that other idea that first John one eight, they didn't believe they needed the blood because they were good people, or whatever Right.
Speaker 2:And so that was my first big revelation was, oh my gosh, god himself became a person and carried the full weight of all of my sin ever on my behalf so that I could be forgiven. So I got the forgiveness piece there in my early twenties. The second part, which is a more exciting part, if you will they're both exciting, but came quite a bit later. That came to my mid thirties and early thirties and that happened at a difficult time in my life and I was doing a lot of soul searching and I had been struggling for years with an addiction to pornography and I had embraced some ideas along the way to justify it a little bit to myself. Oh, this is something, that this is a normal thing that men struggle with. This is just how it is. You try to fight it, you do the best you can, but always going to be there, the way that I tried to justify it to myself, in the sense of not trying to feel too guilty, but also making some effort to not do it all that much. Well, at any rate, during the season of my life, I started really going after God more and reading the word more and listening to messages online more, and I started hearing some phrases that I'd never heard before, like identity in Christ and the free gift of righteousness which, by the way, is right there in Romans five but somehow I'd missed it before and transformation, like serious transformation and freedom from sin, and I thought what in the world is going on with this stuff? And here's the wild thing. The wild thing for me was that I didn't make a decision in my own strength, my own willpower, like I hereby resolve to stop watching pornography, right. But what happened was that I became so interested in Jesus and it was like a flame was lit in my heart of of realization that, wow, jesus, jesus came not just to forgive me from sin, but to free me from it, to fill me with his spirit so that I can walk free from it to the maximum extent possible for the rest of my life, and to help me to live this incredible adventure of life that is so much more than just a struggle to not sin, but it's a journey of walking with him and living a powerful life of impact, and that caused me to fall in love with Jesus in a way that I never had before in my life. Like to sense. This is incredible. God has done this incredible, amazing thing for me and I have this emotional response to it that I'd never felt before.
Speaker 2:And so there was about a two, three week period where all this is happening. All this is happening. All this is happening. All this is happening and, like I said, a couple of weeks into it, like that, I had this realization one day. I haven't even thought about that stuff, I haven't even thought about watching pornography for weeks, and God spoke to me in that moment and he said it wasn't audible, but it was very loud in my spirit and probably the loudest I've ever heard his voice in my spirit. And he said that's not who you are. It never was. And I thought what in the world?
Speaker 2:And in that moment, a series of revelations fell into place, sort of sequential revelations, and the cornerstone of it for me was this realization that God's design for me the blueprint, the archetype, if you will was not a design that was meant to struggle with sin. It was a design that was meant to walk in victory and freedom over it, and that was what he made in the beginning for mankind. That was what he said was very good. Struggling with sexual sin over and over and over again is not very good. Sexual sin over and over and over again is not very good.
Speaker 2:And so whatever was broken through the fall, jesus redeemed through the cross, which means that if I'm in Christ, I have victory over that and I'm restored to the high place, I'm seated in heavenly places in Christ and all that, and so I now have everything that I need for life and godliness. I have everything that I need in Christ, through his grace and his power flowing through me to walk this out. And this all hit boom, boom, boom, boom, boom hit me at once and it changed me forever. It absolutely changed me forever. It changed how I see myself. It changed how I see others. It changed how I see myself, changed how I see others, changed how I think about temptation. I no longer see it as wrestling with an internal enemy. I see it as holding up my shield against an external adversary as opposed to an internal one. When other people are challenging or run into difficult situations, I don't find myself being as offended with them as I used to be. More, I find God reminding me that this is happening because those people don't know who they are.
Speaker 1:Um, man, could you? How can we believe that? It's that simple? And I know it's very deep.
Speaker 1:But like when you're talking about like, if you look at literature like I have a book over here about addiction and like the whole way, like the guy's explaining addiction, it's about it's a Christian psychiatrist and he's explaining addiction and then at the end of it he's the only way to stop it is to actually stop. And you're like huh, like I read this whole book and at the end he's just okay, now stop. And when you're talking, as you're sharing this, I'm thinking of Jesus's words on the Sermon on the Mount, where if you seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, then all of these things will be added unto you. And then it reminds me of reading in that book. If you're trying not to do something, it's like you're pouring gasoline on the addiction.
Speaker 1:Who realized? Who knew that? It wasn't like I'm not going to do it anymore. And it was more like setting your mind on where you actually are. And then you look back on it and you're like oh yeah, I guess I used to struggle with that thing and your mind is you're living somewhere else where you're not even thinking about that thing. Who would have thought that was so simple? And for years I didn't know that I was like the sincere heart, but the knowledge wasn't there, the power wasn't there. Right, super powerful man.
Speaker 2:It is powerful and it can be challenging sometimes to try to connect the dots for others, because they don't necessarily always connect for the same people in the same way, and my wife, grace, who I think you've had on podcasts as well, she'll tell you. She'll tell you that she heard she had the dots laid out for probably dozens of times before they connected. And I know other people have had similar experiences too. Some people hear it right away and they're like yes, and other people are like no, that's nonsense, that's heresy, that doesn't work.
Speaker 1:I think it's really about what you were taught before man. Like, you have a whole bunch of baggage that you're showing up with, and some people have more baggage than others. If you're growing up with a religious mindset, the religious mindset is how it is.
Speaker 2:but seeing, it in their life. Okay, that person actually is free, like they used to have this major problem and they don't anymore. Something happened between then and now, and that then and now lens is how I've now been compelled and convicted to see the Bible, to see the gospel through this. We were this and now we are something else. And it's wild going to the scriptures now and thinking how, man, I read the Bible cover to cover in my 20s and I didn't see this. It was right there, in plain sight, and I didn't see it. And now I read it. I read Romans 5, 6, 7, 8. And I'm like this is incredible. It's absolutely stunning what God has done for us, how we used to be While we were yet sinners. Christ died for us and now we're freed from the power of sin, we're freed from being enslaved to doing these things, and now we're in the spirit and it just it's incredible.
Speaker 1:You know what it's and I'm glad you're talking about this. Telling somebody to read the Bible is probably not the move because, um, you have to be a spiritual person to understand spiritual things. Right, if you look at first Corinthians two, paul explains this thing how. The world does not understand it. The world does not get it. We get it because the Spirit is ministering to our spirit the truths of God. The Holy Spirit is ministering to us the heart of God.
Speaker 1:So in order for us to even read scripture, we first must be a spiritual person, or else it's going to be boring, or else you're going to be looking for the laws on how you should live your life, rather than, when you're a spiritual person, you're reading it and you're knowing God. And so, even if you're not as eloquent of a speaker like, if you notice, in 1 Corinthians 2, paul says man, I was afraid to come to talk to you guys because I wasn't going to say anything in my speech that was super eloquent, but I came to preach to you Christ and his crucifixion. The world, like Richard Dawkins, might be able to explain how God doesn't exist in a much more compelling way to somebody who's worldly. And yet I've been born again and I know God. So when I read the scripture, the scripture comes alive and it's speaking to me about who he is.
Speaker 1:And, yeah, when we're talking to people like, yeah, just read Romans 6. Romans 6 to a non-spiritual person doesn't read the way it reads to you. Romans 8 to a non-spiritual person does not read the same way that it reads to you because you're a spiritual person. And so I encourage us to deal with a like minister to a person's heart before just say go read the Bible. Very true, yeah, man, very true. Talk to me about not living with offense and not being offended at people's actions.
Speaker 2:Yeah, wow, jesus had more reason to be offended than just about anyone ever Perfect, sinless life. And then he's wrongfully accused, tortured and executed. And we have this incredible example from him of showing mercy to the people that did that to you, and literally the soldiers are gambling over his clothing and he's interceding for the father on their behalf as he's hanging from the cross. I mean, that's, that's, that's the archetype, that's the high plate, that's the pinnacle of not being offended when it seems entirely reasonable to be offended. And so, with that and with that framework in the back of my heart and the realization that God chose to do all of this for me when I didn't deserve it, didn't know it was real, didn't care, that was the love that came for me.
Speaker 2:I've had this minor quick side detour here. I've had this recurring vision over the years of walking through a walking through a dark chasm or dark canyon and not really realizing that I was in this dark canyon, just being happily walking I like to hike and be outdoors and stuff and so just happily exploring this canyon and not realizing that it's like extremely dangerous, it's a very dangerous place, it's very dark, and then Jesus is this figure that comes, running from miles and miles away. Is this figure that comes running from miles and miles away, like the figure from the prodigal father sees his son from a distance and takes off running towards him? In my vision it's like that Jesus running from afar, running and running and running, like sprinting, and then he gets to a place where he can approach the edge of this chasm and reach down and I'm like what are you doing? Like who are you? What do you want? But he offers me his arm and he pulls me out, and it's not until I'm pulled out that I realize the magnitude of what he saved me from.
Speaker 2:And so this sense of God's heart for me, when I didn't deserve it, didn't know any better, has given me this lens to see others through, like they may not deserve it, they don't deserve kindness, they don't deserve forgiveness that doesn't have anything to do with it. We don't forgive people just because they deserve it. That's not how the gospel works. We don't earn it, it's a gift. And so we have the privilege of partnering with the Lord in that same spirit towards others and in the same way that the goodness of God leads men to repentance kindness towards those who don't deserve it. It often, if not immediately, then sometimes later can soften their hearts, and so that's been the current running through. My approach to other people is if they had a revelation of who they are in Christ, they probably wouldn't be acting that way.
Speaker 2:And you know what, maybe they do have a revelation and they just they stumbled, they lost, they forgot for a minute who they are and they need to be reminded instead of spanked. So that's given me a tenderness in my heart towards people that I'd never had before. I'd never really cared a whole lot, honestly, about people that weren't my friends or my family, I was whatever. But now I have much more awareness of and sensitivity to who people are and what they're going through, and God's heart for them.
Speaker 1:Okay, I'm going to interrupt this episode real quick and I'm going to bring on my guy, ryan Millsap, my brother. We have the same birthday about 14 years apart. How many years apart? 19?, 12. 12 years apart, ryan man, question for you how long has this good gospel been a part of your life, my man?
Speaker 3:Since 2019, I believe, and I don't know math. So however long that is from then to now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's tough numbers there Five years but I mean, you're a Bible teacher man.
Speaker 3:What do you expect from me? I only know the number seven.
Speaker 1:That's right. That's right. Let me ask you this man what has the gospel done in changing your life?
Speaker 3:man, I don't even know where to begin. Um, it's. It's legitimately changed it in in an incredible amount of ways. Like I, used to be addicted to stuff that we don't have no business being around to. Not addicted, insecure to secure, looking for affirmation, looking for people to think that I am great, smart, wise to not caring and being able to love people regardless of what they think about me.
Speaker 1:So I mean not very big then what they think about me, so I mean not very big then I'm just kidding. That's a lot, bro. That's a lot. You have dedicated time, money, energy of yourself to keep this message going forward. Why is that?
Speaker 3:important to you, Dude.
Speaker 3:The world would literally be such a great place if we all really believed what Jesus said about us, If we all actually got a hold of the gospel, if the people that we could, that we were around all the time, if we could all accept the gospel for what it is and all believe it and all believe Jesus, like that would be that's literally, legitimately heaven on earth and we are are able to partake in little bits of of giving heaven on earth, bringing heaven down to earth Whenever we we talk about this, whenever we are able to spread it, whenever we're, whenever we're able to invite people to believe the gospel.
Speaker 3:And I mean we get to experience heaven on earth all the time, just in ourselves, because of the fact that we have Jesus literally in us and we actually get to see what that's like experientially. And so to be able to have everybody know that, for no reason, like for no personal benefit other than the fact that I get to see you and I get to see other people living their lives the best way possible, like with the most peace possible, with the most happiness, the most joy and the ability to over, to get through storms without having to let it destroy you, Like, like. That's just the kind of stuff I want to see from everybody.
Speaker 3:I get so excited when I hear somebody just say like you know, this person accepted the gospel, this person has accepted Jesus and they know what it means to be in Christ and they know what the gospel is and what it means for themselves. Like it's just, it's so incredible and so, man, I just want everybody to know. That's, and it's just literally no strings attached. I just will do anything to make sure that people know what the gospel is and who they are in Christ.
Speaker 1:And I love that. If you are listening and you want to partner with us, you want this gospel to get out there. You can go to loverealityorg slash give. Loverealityorg slash give. Dot O-R-G slash, give. Love reality, dot O-R-G slash give. And every dollar that you donate to this ministry goes towards getting this message out there, whether it's through the podcast, whether it's through Internet church, whether it's through meetups that we have. We want you to partner with us so this message gets out there. So, loverealityorg slash, give. Ryan, my bro, what a privilege to do ministry with you, bro.
Speaker 3:I love it, bro. I love it, I love you.
Speaker 1:Love you, dog. We don't say it enough. Thanks, man. Thanks for coming on. If you don't mind, I want to hear about this beginning of this relationship. About this beginning of this relationship, because I feel like I don't know the ins and outs of it, but it seems like the way God was ministering to you and then you started ministering to Grace, that seems like a beautiful story. That just seemed like it was very natural. Do you mind going into that at all, like when you guys first met and then hearing the stuff she was saying and what part of the journey were?
Speaker 2:you on during this part I had. I was pretty secure in my identity prior to ever meeting her and we were friends for several years before we ever started dating and then before, before we eventually got married. And so it was during this friendship phase where I was just a brother in Christ, just someone who knew each other. And it's funny because initially I shared some of these things in passing. We'd talk about spiritual topics because we knew we were both believers. And she was like that's weird, and she'll tell you that she thought that I was a heretic, this is some weird guy who thinks that he doesn't have to sin, what is that? And she didn't really believe it. And but when I shared like, hey, I used to be ensnared with this compulsion to do unclean things on a regular basis that I knew were wrong but couldn't stop. And now I'm free from that she didn't know what to do with that. She's like okay, all right, what gives Explain, how did this happen for you?
Speaker 2:It's like I said before having someone that's lived, that's transformed, in front of you, it's hard for people to explain that away. At the very least it's a conversation starter and it's an opportunity to explain it to them. So that was the gateway for me and her to connect on this topic. Was her being like okay, you're free, I want to know how. I want to know how and why you're free. And so I was able to walk through it, walk through some of the same stuff I've shared with you in the last few minutes, but do it over and over again with scripture. Here's how this works, here's why it worked for me, here's what happened, here's the ins and outs and specifics of all of it.
Speaker 2:And I think she would say I would say as well that one of the biggest things that made a difference for her was that I told her that I saw her, discerned her spiritually, the way that God saw her, which means pure, holy, blameless, above reproach, free, all the above and more. That I saw her that way, even though she didn't feel that way about herself. And that somehow, the fact that I told her that I saw this in her even though it wasn't externally true, in the circumstances and behaviors of her life, yet Somehow my believing it about her caused her to begin, just maybe, believing it about herself as well. And then, wonder of wonders, the faith began to ripple outward and changed her life in the same way. That had changed mine, and I think that's one of the big themes of all of it is that you believe first.
Speaker 2:Then you see, it's the faith that transforms, its faith in the finished work of the cross and what Jesus has accomplished in the fact that he really does live in you and he really has set you free from sin. It's believing that you're free causes the freedom to manifest in your life. That was the beginning of our journey together. Before we ever dated the transformation that I had experienced, I was able to share with her, and then it multiplied in her life and manifested in her life as well.
Speaker 1:I was able to share with her, and then it multiplied in her life and manifested in her life as well. So seeing her this way, did this make you start considering. Maybe I'm really attracted to her Like now that you're seeing her through truth.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, absolutely. It's certainly part of it, and we probably get arguing about the Bible a lot more if we didn't both see it the same way. But no, it's. It really makes a huge difference to see someone instead of and this person to just. They just have this problem that they deal with all the time and they're probably always going to deal with it.
Speaker 2:Maybe they try really hard and they'll struggle a little bit less from time to time, like that's depressing and some people might say that's realistic. That's the way it is. But when you have the opportunity to see them as this shining, radiant new creation in Christ that has been set free from sin, that's been given everything they need for life and godliness right, that has the opportunity to walk in the light as he is, in the light that once was darkness and now is light and is seated in heavenly places in Christ, and on it goes, when you have the opportunity to see them like that, it's like why would I not want to see them that way? Why would I not choose that for them and then, to the maximum extent possible, lead them towards that, encourage them towards that?
Speaker 1:Man that's so powerful. What an encouragement. What an encouragement that is just for me. I'm just seeing them and I know this, but to be encouraged in it. Super powerful as you guys ended up getting married. She's pretty soon going to have a baby, right, she is yep. What do you feel like God is growing you in this season of your life?
Speaker 2:Well, I'll tell you, being on the cusp of fatherhood has definitely given me a sense of this. The sacredness, if you will like, the sacredness of parenthood and the sense of and the way that parents interact with their children has such a profound impact on the course of their lives, the people, that they become what they believe and what they don't. Obviously, children grow up and make their own choices and they have freedom, but we've seen, we all know, the stories of parents that weren't that great and how it hurt the kids and parents that were great and were present and showed up again and again, and the impact that has on their children. And so I've just been thinking a lot recently about what kind of dad do I want to be and how do I want to show the love of the father to my children.
Speaker 2:Because we talked earlier a little bit about the Christian science stuff and how my dad was a Christian scientist, but that notwithstanding, he did an incredible job as a father of revealing the heart of God to me. I can't tell you how many times as a dad, he would just come up to me for no apparent reason and say, sky, I love you. I just want you to know I'm so proud of you and like from a young age, like as a little boy, to have the sense of your father's love and pride in you just rock solid. That was just this groundswell of strength in my heart that had just continued to carry me through life, and through that I had a framework to relate to the father and and I want to give that to my kids, I want them to know that truth and love and goodness, like from the father through me to them, is more solid than anything else in the universe.
Speaker 1:Love it, man that is so powerful. Is there anything else you want to share with us that you've just been learning, growing in, in, and that you think that the people of god would benefit from?
Speaker 2:you know, this journey of freedom, this journey of discovering who we are in christ, it involves a lot of conversations with people who are not always at the same place on the journey. Sometimes people are further ahead than us, sometimes they're the same spot, sometimes they're further behind, sometimes they're actively antagonistic to the journey. Sometimes people are further ahead than us, sometimes they're in the same spot, sometimes they're further behind, sometimes they're actively antagonistic to the journey itself. And so having the right spirit about those conversations is really important, and that's something that I've done it wrong a few times. I've done it right a few times, I'm continually trying to get better at it, and I think, particularly for those of us who have encountered some degree of significant freedom in the Lord, it's really important to resist what can be a slow increase in spiritual pride at times and looking down our nose oh well, they just don't understand yet. And so there's a difference between saying they don't see yet and I'm, and they're very sincere in what they do believe, and I would love to have a conversation with you and talk about it and maybe we can both grow together Like that's healthy, but you're wrong and I want to fix you. Is not, even if that might be true. It's not helpful to see another person as just a problem to solve, like they're not a problem to solve, they're a person to love and it's in that connection and that love that transformation can be possible.
Speaker 2:So I just I see a lot of believers on in real life and on social media online getting really aggressive with each other about just slinging Bible passages at each other and I'm like this doesn't help anyone and it's not a good look. We can talk about these things. We can have honest dialogue. Hey, I'm trying to understand where you're coming from. What does this passage mean to you? Explain to me how you're seeing this. Explain to me how you get this conclusion from that passage.
Speaker 2:And we can even come to the point of saying you know what I see where you're coming from, but I still disagree. And that's fine, we're allowed to have those disagreements. But the really aggressive vitriol and condemnation that we sometimes sling at each other, that concerns me and I don't like seeing that in the body. I don't think God likes seeing that between his kids. And so, coming back to that spirit of how we see each other, we want to see one another through the finished work. We want to see one another through the heart of the Father, with that tenderness and with that compassion. That means, even if we have a hard truth to speak or a hard encouragement to speak, or whatever it is, we do it in love and it's that goodness, that kindness, that tenderness of God that leads men to repentance.
Speaker 1:Beautiful man. Praise the Lord. This is how I usually finish these conversations. I say where do you want to go back to talk to old Skylar? But and as we've done this for over three years now, most of the time we can admit old Richard, old Skylar, old Grace we wouldn't have listened. But if you did have a chance to jump in the DeLorean and go back to talk to old Skylar as he was struggling or trying to figure out his identity, what would you say to this guy? Where would you go? Would you go high school Skyler, college Skyler?
Speaker 2:Man, that's a really tough question. Time travel is a funny topic because it gets messy really fast.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if you tell him that then the world would like change, and then you're not married to great yeah I honestly I think I would probably go, I would probably go back.
Speaker 2:Let's just we'll say for the sake of argument that it's not going to dramatically change the course of events, but it's going to change how I experience the events that are coming. And so I would probably go back to somewhere in the high school range and I would give some encouragement to that young man and I would just try not to load him up too much, but I would probably just give him a few tidbits to spark his interest, like a couple things that will compel him to maybe look into the Bible in greater depth, because at that point he didn't fully believe in Jesus, much less know his identity in Christ. So I'd probably say something like you don't realize it yet, and that's okay.
Speaker 2:But Jesus has done something on your behalf that's orders of magnitude greater than you've begun to comprehend, and he loves you and he's inviting you to go on this journey of discovery of who he is and who you are and, when you're ready, it's going to rock your world and it's going to change you forever.
Speaker 1:Man, good news. Skylar man, you're a blessing in my life. I feel like you and Grace, feel like I've met you once and I've met Grace once, but I feel like we're related, I feel like we're family in the Lord and your testimony and just and when I say testimony, not just hearing the story from you, but seeing how you operate and the care you have for God's people, it is a blessing to me and so thank you so much for coming on here and sharing your story.
Speaker 2:Man, I appreciate you, thank you sir, it was a pleasure being here.
Speaker 1:Man, super powerful Love. That that, brother, this message, this prayer is for you If you are trying to put on this identity. Father, thank you that you have made me this thing, that you have given me righteousness, that you've set me apart, that I'm seated in heavenly places, right next to you and your son, jesus, and that is who my life is. And so, while my circumstances don't look like it or feel like it, I know that it is true, because your word is creative and if you said it, it creates it. So thank you that you've done it. I receive it. I believe it in Jesus's name, amen. Uh, if you want to hang out with the Dusty Boys and you're asking who are the Dusty Boys? Who are they Rich, go to our circles page on loverealityorg and sign up for the Dusty Boys Bible study. You will not regret it, loverealityorg circles. Go to it, check it out. Rock with the Dusty Boys that's my boys, ben Williams and Justin Koo, and you're in for a blessing love y'all appreciate y'all bye.