doubting christianity

Summary

Podcast Summary: Christ with Coffee On Ice

Episode: Doubting Christianity
Host: Ally Yost
Date: November 7, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode of Christ with Coffee On Ice dives deep into the raw and real experiences of walking with Christ—especially the moments of doubt, transition, and learning to seek God authentically. Host Ally Yost brings vulnerability, encouragement, and hope as she addresses community questions about faith, doubts, the Sabbath, and the importance of simplifying our relationship with God. The central theme revolves around honesty with our struggles, experiencing God in every season (including doubt and confusion), and dropping false expectations about what life with Jesus should look like.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Starting with Prayer and Communion

• Opening and Vulnerability:

  • Ally shares feeling “a little sicky poo” (00:49), facing a hectic move, and being miraculously well after intense prayer and communion:
    • “I woke up feeling really good this morning and I didn’t even really get a ton of sleep. It was strange, actually. It’s supernatural that I’m here and I’m feeling as good as I am today. So praise Jesus.” (01:38)

• Group Prayer:

  • Prayed for healing (physical, emotional, spiritual) and encouragement for everyone listening, emphasizing God’s mercy and newness each day.
  • Encourages listening as community:
    • “We get to come together as a body to lift each other up, to support each other in prayer.” (04:18)
  • Topics: Healing, courage, boldness, discernment, wisdom, deeper intimacy with God.
  • Communion: Ally reminds that the physical elements may be imperfect, but “it doesn’t take away from the power of the blood.” (06:04)

2. How to Recognize When God is Leading You into a New Season

• Question from Emma: “How do you know if God is bringing you into a new season?” (08:00)
• Ally’s Insights:
  • Subtle Spiritual Shifts: Often sensed as an “air change”—not always obvious in external circumstances, but internally undeniable.
    “It’s like when you feel the air change from summertime to going into the fall, and it’s like the air is a little bit more crisp.” (09:04)
  • Loss of ‘Grace’ for the Old Season: Tasks or relationships that once felt easy now feel harder, perhaps signaling God is moving you forward.
    “All of a sudden, when you feel that shift in the spirit, when things change, you also feel the grace lift from that very thing.” (10:58)
  • Grieving What’s Left Behind: Change often comes with grief and resistance, but also a sense of peace in surrender.
  • Spiritual Discernment:
    • Encourages prayerful distinction between spiritual warfare vs. God’s direction. Seeks clarity:
      “God takes those prayers so seriously because he loves you that much and he doesn’t want you to sit in a place of confusion, because confusion does not come from God.” (11:40)
  • God Changes Our Desires:
    “God can really change the desires of your heart to get you on course with his will.” (12:35)
  • Transition Periods are Normal:
    Life with God is often “walking between seasons,” not instant upgrades—require trust and faith even in uncertainty.

3. Dealing with Doubts in Christianity

• Prompt from Zoe: Over 200 listener votes to discuss “doubts in Christianity.” (26:20)
• Ally’s Approach:

  • Unrealistic Expectations:

    • The belief that following Jesus solves all earthly problems instantly is a major cause of doubt.
    • “There can be a pocket of the church that paints it out to be this thing that’s like, and once you give your life to God, everything is going to be great...But it’s not great in the sense of, like, walking with the Lord means that you’re not going to endure any suffering.” (27:15-28:00)

  • Suffering Persists:

    • Suffering and pain are part of fallen, broken creation—not a sign that God is absent or unfaithful.
    • God’s goodness means He walks with us THROUGH hardships, not that He removes them all.

  • Free Will & Brokenness:

    • Ally references Genesis, the fall, and free will as reasons for our struggles:
      “It was never a part of God’s plan. The only reason that we have to endure the things that we do that are painful and hurtful...is because we have free will and because God loved us enough to give us the choice to make our own choices.” (29:01)

  • Love Must be Chosen:
    Choosing God deepens love’s meaning; forced love wouldn’t be real.

  • Ally’s Personal Testimony:

    • Before Jesus, life was “an empty, empty, empty shell of myself, trying to carry the weight...the things that happened to me...things that I had done.” (34:08)
    • “Having a Savior, having Jesus by my side, has not made my life easier, but he has helped carry the burdens...He’s the only one who could have gotten me through that.” (35:05)
    • Life didn’t get “easier,” but became anchored and bearable.

  • The Danger of Instant Gratification:

    • Our culture’s “instant gratification” (Amazon, DoorDash, etc.) can become a spiritual stumbling block, making us impatient with God (36:30).

  • Spiritual Warfare at the Start:

    • New Christians especially struggle with doubt as the Enemy pushes back:
      “The beginnings of our journeys are some of the hardest times, because...you're like, God is ripping all these scales from your eyes, and you're seeing all the ways that you've been living in your life, and you're like, oh my gosh, God, I have been so wrong.” (41:45)
    • Community, honesty, and support are critical for those in the early stages.

  • Importance of Honesty:

    • Sharing testimonies honestly means also sharing the pain and challenge, not just the victories.

    Memorable Quote:

    "I'm not comparing Jesus to a dinky little shack. He is the best thing ever...But overpromising that it's going to be perfect is really dangerous. Because if people come into this with the wrong expectations and we're not telling them the full truth...if it's not a full truth, it's probably a lie."
    — Ally Yost (37:55)

4. Honoring the Sabbath

• Question from Kelsey: “How do we actually follow the Sabbath?” (53:36)
• Ally’s View and Advice:
  • Sabbath is about resting—true rest, not just distraction or entertainment. “The Sabbath is honored in the best way that you feel rested. God just wants us to rest.” (54:00)
  • Sabbath rest is personal—could be hiking, reading, being with friends, or “being a freaking couch potato.”
  • The presence of God is what matters most:
    “It is in the presence of Jesus where we actually receive rest.” (56:18)
  • Encourages listeners to prayerfully discern what is truly restful and life-giving for them.
  • Sabbath is also about letting God “fill your cup so it is overflowing for the week.” (55:22)

5. Word of the Week: Simplify

• Reflections on Complexity and Faith:
  • Felt God speak the word “simplify”—urging listeners to drop spiritual performance and pressure.
  • Personal story: Visiting Bethel Church, receiving the word to “not take myself so seriously and to not take God so seriously” (in terms of overcomplicating relationship with Him, not irreverence). (59:17)
  • “God is so vastly complex, actually, but also so simple at the same time where all he truly wants is our friendship. He wants our loyalty, and he wants our love. And then he also wants to give that in return.” (60:50)
  • Encourage “simply being a daughter [or son]” to God, asking Him how to make the relationship more restful and less religious.

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “I prayed, oh my gosh, did I pray. Because honestly, guys…this isn’t good timing, Lord, for me to get sick…so believe it or not, I sound a little congested today, but I woke up feeling really good…and it felt supernatural.” — Ally Yost (01:38)
• “If you're feeling this weird tug of war where you're really confused, I wouldn't say that's from God. Because confusion does not come from God.” — Ally Yost (11:40)
• “It’s not that my life has gotten any easier, but I do believe that the weight and heaviness and the burdens and the shame and the sin...having a Savior, having Jesus by my side, has not made my life easier, but he has helped carry the burdens.” — Ally Yost (35:05)
• “Overpromising that it’s going to be perfect is really dangerous. If people come into this with the wrong expectations and we’re not telling them the full truth...if it’s not a full truth, it’s probably a lie.” — Ally Yost (37:55)
• “Being in relationship with God—it’s simple.” — Ally Yost (99:09)

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Important Timestamps

• Opening, update, prayer: 00:00–07:30
• How to know you’re in a new season: 08:00–17:00
• On doubts in Christianity: 26:20–45:00
• The Sabbath / Rest: 53:36–58:17
• Word of the Week ("Simplify") & closing thoughts: 59:12–99:12

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Closing Encouragement

Ally wraps with a call to “walk more like Jesus, talk more like Him, be more like Jesus today,” encouraging listeners to show the world how “cool Jesus is,” live in gratitude, and simplify their relationship with God (99:12).

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Episode Takeaways

• Doubt is normal, especially when expectations clash with reality—but God can handle our doubts.
• Walking with Jesus isn’t about a perfect life, it’s about not being alone in its messy reality.
• Rest and Sabbath are vital and deeply personal—rest isn’t distraction. It’s presence with God.
• Relationships with God are both beautifully complex and profoundly simple—don’t let religious pressure or performance steal that simplicity.

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This episode is a gentle, hope-filled reminder to be honest with yourself and God; to embrace seasons of change, seek support and community, and to remember—just be His child, be loved, and keep it simple.

Transcript

[Ali Yost]

Hello, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Christ with Coffee on Ice. I am your host, Ali Yost. It is a joy and honor to be here with you guys. As always, the feeling is always mutual every week. Happy Friday, everybody. I am so excited to be here with you guys. Obviously, we have our coffee on ice here in our CWCOI glass tumbler. I'm sure you guys can guess what we we have again today. We have a pumpkin spice latte. I have to every time. So good. I washed the cup before we started filming, and I almost feel like I have a little bit of an aftertaste of dish soap. But that's fine. We have our Christ. We have the word of God.

[Co-host or Guest]

Thank you, God.

[Ali Yost]

Anyway, how are you guys feeling today?

[Co-host or Guest]

How are we doing?

[Ali Yost]

I think. I mean, two things that were really on my heart coming into this episode today is. Well, one, I really wanted us to pray because I love doing that with you guys. I love praying for y' all and just see what the Lord has in that. And then also, I wanted to take communion with you guys because we also haven't done that together as a fam in a while. I'm a little under the weather today. I don't know if you can hear it in my voice. I was starting to get a little sicky poo yesterday, and I. I didn't like it. I started to feel suspicious. My body was feeling a little achy. You know, like those beginning stages of getting sick where you're like, okay, I sense that something is wrong here. I don't feel 100%. And so I prayed. Oh, my gosh, did I pray. Because honestly, guys, in current time, like, I'm talking as if I've already moved, because I know that that's when this episode goes live. But in physical current time of me recording this, I move tomorrow. And so I was just like, this isn't good timing, Lord, for me to get sick. I have a whole moving crew coming tomorrow, and I have a ton of unpacking that I need to do the next couple days. And so if I'm so, so down bad, like, bedridden sick for the next couple days, that will really put a damper on all of the things that I need to do in the next couple days. So I pray to pray, to pray, to pray, to plead the blood. I took communion. I. I did all the things. I was like, lord, I need your mercy right now. So believe it or not, I mean, I sound a little congested today, and I do feel a little sicky, but I woke up feeling really good this morning and I didn't even really get a ton of sleep. It was strange, actually. It's supernatural that I'm here and I'm feeling as good as I am today. So praise Jesus. Thank you, God. But yeah, I wanna, I wanna take some communion and just declare healing over all of our bodies. Okay. In Jesus name, amen. Whether you have a head cold like me or you have something more serious, I think, you know, just praying for each other and, and taking communion. So let's pray. First off, let's just pray. Father, I just thank you for today, God, I thank you that in your word it says that your mercies are new every morning. And so, Jesus, we just plead your mercy today, God, and we just ask.

[Co-host or Guest]

For healing, Lord, we ask for healing.

[Ali Yost]

Today in whatever ways that we need it. It could be of a broken heart.

[Co-host or Guest]

It could be physical healing, Lord, but.

[Ali Yost]

We ask that your holy spirit just.

[Co-host or Guest]

Comes right now in Jesus name that your holy spirit comes and heals us. God, we are asking for your healing right now, today. And we believe in the healing powers.

[Ali Yost]

That you have through your spirit, Jesus.

[Co-host or Guest]

We believe in your death and your resurrection.

[Ali Yost]

We believe that you have overcome all.

[Co-host or Guest]

Of sin and evil and disease, God.

[Ali Yost]

And so we just plead the blood of Jesus over our bodies, over our.

[Co-host or Guest]

Temples, over our minds and over our hearts today, God, I declare the truth of the gospel over my friend on.

[Ali Yost]

The other side of this podcast.

[Co-host or Guest]

Lord, I thank you that they have been made beautifully in your image, God, that you have a purpose for their life.

[Ali Yost]

Thank you, Lord, that they were so strategically and intentionally knitted together in the womb of their mommy by you.

[Co-host or Guest]

Lord, I thank you that you so intentionally made them for a time, for such a time as this, God, that.

[Ali Yost]

They are meant to be here and.

[Co-host or Guest]

They have an impact on this world. And so, God, I thank you for.

[Ali Yost]

All of our journeys.

[Co-host or Guest]

I thank you that we get to.

[Ali Yost]

Come together as a body to lift each other up, to support each other in prayer. And God, we also just intercede for all of our other brothers and sisters who are listening together as a body, God, we are lifting each other up. And even through times where it feels like, especially in the world right now, it just feels really heavy. And so, God, we're also just asking.

[Co-host or Guest]

For your protection in our days, God, and protection over our families. Jesus, we thank you for the truth of who you are. Thank you that your spirit dwells inside of us.

[Ali Yost]

And God, we just pray for more fire today, God, I. I actually just declare more of a fire over My brothers and sisters, right now, in Jesus name, I pray for a heightening of.

[Co-host or Guest]

Courage and boldness and discernment.

[Ali Yost]

I pray for a heightening of just wisdom, God. And I pray, Holy Spirit, that you intercede and you also just help translate when we're sitting down with the word, God. I pray that as we're reading the word, it just penetrates into our souls, God. And we just ask for growth.

[Co-host or Guest]

We ask for you to continue to grow us into more and more like you, Lord, we pray all these things in your name. Amen.

[Ali Yost]

Amen.

[Co-host or Guest]

Okay, now let's take our communion.

[Ali Yost]

This one has been floating around in my purse for weeks, so it's a little smushy. He's a little crinkly. It reminds me of that meme of a water bottle. I don't know if you guys have seen this. It's been floating around for neons. I think I saw it for the first time when I was in high school, which was like 10, over 10 years ago, of the water bottle, like, when it's, like, kind of crushed and it looks like this. And I think the meme is something stupid, like when somebody tickles your neck and you're like, that's what he looks like. He just is kind of like. But that's okay. It doesn't take away from the power of the blood. Amen. All right, so grab your juice, grab your bread. Grab whatever you. If you have little communion cups. Queen king. Yes. I get mine off of Amazon. I buy them in bulk. I have more on the way, actually, as we speak. But even if you don't, I. I.

[Co-host or Guest]

Think most things could work if you have juice and bread nearby. I'm just breaking my bread up in little pieces. Okay. Jesus, we thank you for your sacrifice. God, thank you for the body. Thank you for taking on all of our sins, Lord, thank you that we are forgiven for our sins because of you. And so, Jesus, we just love you. Today we honor you and we recognize all that you are in Jesus name. And we take the blood. We plead this blood over our bodies. God, thank you for the blood that heals us, mend our hearts. God, I declare healing over my body. My brother or sister on the other. On the other side their body. And we just declare healing and protection. God, in Jesus name. That's good. Thank you, Jesus. Okay. Okay.

[Ali Yost]

We haven't done a style of one of these episodes in a while, but I figured we could just do kind of a little Q A bouncing around from maybe a few different topics, touching on each one. I Don't know if you guys. I feel like you do. We've gotten some good feedback when it comes to these kinds of episodes. But yeah, I figured we could just do like a Q A style episode, cover some questions and topics that you guys have. I ran a poll on my Instagram, as I always do, and I. I will say a lot of them I feel like we've already covered, but some of them I think we could dive more into as well. So Emma asks how to know if God is bringing you into a new season. I love that question. And I really, I. I will always just speak from my own experience because I feel like this could have a few different answers, I think, to this question. But I think that the first thing that comes to my mind on. On how I know that God is bringing me into a new season is when. Is when it feels like there's actually a shift. I would say, like, and if you are somebody who has walked through change before or you've felt yourself walking out of a season and potentially even walking into a new one. For me, I. I feel a shift first. And when I say that, it's like, I just. Something. It's got to be spiritual, it has to be supernatural. But it's just like something will just kind of switch in my atmosphere of just like my everyday life. Something will shift in my spirit where it'll just feel like things are different. Even if, like, it doesn't look super different in the natural just yet. It's like, ooh, like the seasons have changed. You know, it's the best way that I can really even describe it too, is like when you feel the air change from, you know, summertime to going into the fall, and it's like the air is a little bit more crisp. Like, that's the only kind of comparison, metaphorically that I could compare it to. But it's like all of a sudden it's just like the air is different. It's the first thing I will. I. I'll feel it first. And then I think the other thing too, when changing seasons, because I think that this happens with every time you walk into a new season, is obviously, if you're walking into another season, it's because that the Lord has really good things, you know, in that next season. And he's like, okay, you're ready. We're gonna walk into this next era of your life, however you wanna say it. And I'll notice that there's just like a lot of grief in my heart. Like, things will be then changing in the natural. Like, in my personal life, where maybe certain dynamics will start to change or. Yeah, like, that there will just be, like, a grace that's lifted for the things that used to feel like it had so much grace, where it was just easy, and then all of a sudden it's just like, there.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Like, the grace has left.

[Ali Yost]

I hope that this is translating and you. You guys understand what I'm saying, but I've seen this happen in my life a few times where it was like, when things were just working and it was just flowing. When you're in the will of God, it's just like. It's just easier, easy. You know, you're. You're flowing in the current of him, and it's just like, okay, we're vibing. And then all of a sudden, when you feel that shift in the spirit, when things kind of just like, change, you also feel the grace lift from that very thing. And it'll almost feel like there might even be a little part of you that's still trying to do a bit of a tug of war where you're like, wait a minute. But this is what's always worked. Like, why do I feel like I'm. Why do I feel like there's a little bit of a resistance? Or why do I feel like I'm hitting a block all of a sudden? Or why does it feel like it's not as easy anymore? Why has my heart almost changed a bit? Like, I want this to keep working. Why is it not working? And I feel like that's when we have to sit down with God and be like, okay, God, are you changing the season that I'm in right now? Because this doesn't feel like the same grace that's always had. And granted. There's also such thing as spiritual warfare. I'm not gonna say that every time something feels difficult, it means that God is. Is changing your season or that the grace has lifted. I do think that it takes a level of discernment with the Lord, too, to be like, hey, is this warfare? Is this resistance from the enemy? Or is this you, like, truly guiding me in a different direction? And I feel like the best way to know whether it's God guiding you into another season is if in that surrender of you being like, okay, God, I like, if this is you changing the course of my life, if this is you changing the course of my relationships, my career, what, like, whatever that looks like, I ask Lord, that you overwhelm me with a sense of peace. And I pray, too, that you make it so clear that this is actually your will and it's nothing else. And God takes those prayers so seriously because he loves you that much and he doesn't want you to sit in a place of confusion, because confusion does not come from God. And so I think that's the other thing is that if you're feeling like, this weird tug of war where you're, like, really confused, I wouldn't say that that's from God, because again, there. There has to be, like, a grace where it's like, no, there's a lot of change happening right now, and I'm kind of grieving it, and I'm feeling the weight of. Of how there's just, like, not a grace for the season anymore. And now I feel like I'm going through a transition, but for some reason, in my grief, I still have peace. You know, that that's God. But if. If you're in a. In a season of, like, grief and confusion and you just, like, don't know which way you're going, I would truly seek clarity from God and be like, lord, I need you to make it so crystal clear that this is from you right now. And if it's not, give me the wisdom and the discernment that this is simply just resistance of the enemy and this is just warfare and that I need to push and I need to continue to lean on you through this, you know? So I would say those are two of the. Those are a couple of the main things that I will feel and see when I know that God is walking me into a new season. And also, I think a change of heart, like, if your heart is, like, changing, it's so. I mean, God, it says it in scripture that he holds the power to harden hearts and soften hearts. And I have seen the Lord, I mean, completely change my heart for a season where I'm like, yeah, I mean, this has served me really well and I've loved it, but I, for some reason, I just feel it in my spirit and in my heart that I'm not supposed to be in this season anymore. And as much as it's sad, like, God can really change the desires of your heart to get you on course with his will and. Or continue, you know, your course with Him. And so that's another thing I've noticed in myself when. When I'm walking into a new season is it's almost like God is, like, preparing or has already prepared my heart to receive that new season. So even with me maybe still wanting to cling on familiar the familiar parts of whatever season he's walking me out of. Like, my heart will still. My heart has still been open and curious about where he's bringing me, and that's been undeniable for me. Sometimes where I'm like, no, I can't even force this, even if I wanted to. Like, I want to, but I can't because he's just changed my heart, and I can feel it. And sometimes I don't even know what he's changed my heart to, but I just know that my heart is not in this anymore and he's leading me somewhere else. And so there is, like, a serious level of trust and faith that has to come with that, because from my experience, too, like, going into new seasons, it's not always, like, an immediate, like, transition. It's not like I'm just, like, in an old season, and then the next day I'm in a completely new season. Sometimes there's, like, a transition period where I have no idea where God is taking me or what's going on. And that is more times than not, in my opinion. I don't. It's. I don't actually think God has ever just directly planted me into the next season. And I'm like, okay, here we go. We're ready. Typically, there is a bit of, like, a. A walk in between this season and the next one. And so there's such opportunity of just growth with the Lord and learning to have more faith in him and trusting that even if you have no idea what he's changed your heart for, like, you don't know yet. Trusting that it's for a reason and it's for something good, and that it's because he wants to grow you and he wants to take you onto that next step with Him. But I don't know if that feedback was helpful. I pray that it was. But those are some things that come to my mind right off the top of my head of ways that I know God is bringing me into a new season. Hello, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Christ with Coffee on Ice. I am your host, Ali Yost. It is a joy and honor to be here with you guys. As always, the feeling is always mutual every week. Happy Friday, everybody. I am so excited to be here with you guys. Obviously, we have our Coffee on Ice here in our CWCOI glass tumbler. I'm sure you guys can guess what we have again today. We have a pumpkin spice latte. I have to every time. So good. I washed the cup before we started filming, and I almost Feel like I have a little bit of an aftertaste of dish soap, but that's fine. We have our Christ. We have the word of God.

[Co-host or Guest]

Thank you, God.

[Ali Yost]

Anyway, how are you guys feeling today?

[Co-host or Guest]

How are we doing?

[Ali Yost]

I think. I mean, two things that were really on my heart coming into this episode today is. Well, one, I really wanted us to pray because I love doing that with you guys. I love praying for y' all and just see what the Lord has in that. And then also, I wanted to take communion with you guys because we also haven't done that together as a fam in a while. I'm a little under the weather today. I don't know if you can hear it in my voice. I was starting to get a little sicky poo yesterday, and I. I didn't like it. I started to feel suspicious. My body was feeling a little achy. You know, like those beginning stages of getting sick where you're like, okay, I sense that something is wrong here. I don't feel 100%. And so I prayed. Oh, my gosh, did I pray? Because honestly, guys, in current time, like, I'm talking as if I've already moved, because I know that that's when this episode goes live, but in physical current time of me recording this, I. I move tomorrow. And so I was just like, this isn't good timing, Lord, for me to get sick. I have a whole moving crew coming tomorrow, and I have a ton of unpacking that I need to do the next couple days. And so if I'm so down bad, like, bedridden sick for the next couple days, that will really put a damper on all of the things that I need to do in the next couple days. So I prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed to plead the blood. I took communion. I. I did all the things, and I was like, lord, I need your mercy right now. So, believe it or not, I mean, I sound a little congested today, and I do feel a little sicky, but I woke up feeling really good this morning, and I didn't even really get a ton of sleep. It was strange, actually. It's supernatural that I'm here and I'm feeling as good as I am today. So praise Jesus. Thank you, God. But, yeah, I wanna. I wanna take some communion and just declare healing over all of our bodies. Okay. In Jesus name, amen. Whether you have a head cold like me or you have something more serious, I think, you know, just praying for each other and. And taking communion. So let's pray. First off, let's just pray, Father. I just thank you for today, God, I thank you that in your word it says that your mercies are new every morning. And so, Jesus, we just plead your mercy today, God, and we just ask.

[Co-host or Guest]

For healing, Lord, we ask for healing.

[Ali Yost]

Today in whatever ways that we need it. It could be of a broken heart.

[Co-host or Guest]

It could be physical healing, Lord, but.

[Ali Yost]

We ask that your Holy Spirit just.

[Co-host or Guest]

Comes right now in Jesus name that your Holy Spirit comes and heals us. God, we are asking for your healing right now, today. And we believe in the healing powers.

[Ali Yost]

That you have through your spirit, Jesus.

[Co-host or Guest]

We believe in your death and your resurrection.

[Ali Yost]

We believe that you have overcome all.

[Co-host or Guest]

Of sin and evil and disease, God.

[Ali Yost]

And so we just plead the blood of Jesus over our bodies, over our.

[Co-host or Guest]

Temples, over our minds and over our.

[Ali Yost]

Hearts today, God, I declare the truth of the gospel over my friend on the other side of this podcast.

[Co-host or Guest]

Lord, I thank you that they have.

[Ali Yost]

Been made beautifully in your image, God.

[Co-host or Guest]

That you have a purpose for their life.

[Ali Yost]

Thank you, Lord, that they were so strategically and intentionally knitted together in the womb of their mommy by you, Lord.

[Co-host or Guest]

I thank you that.

[Ali Yost]

You so intentionally.

[Co-host or Guest]

Made them for a time, for such a time as this, God, that they.

[Ali Yost]

Are meant to be here and they.

[Co-host or Guest]

Have an impact on this world. And so, God, I thank you for.

[Ali Yost]

All of our journeys.

[Co-host or Guest]

I thank you that we get to.

[Ali Yost]

Come together as a body to lift each other up, to support each other in prayer. And God, we also just intercede for all of our other brothers and sisters who are listening together as a body, God, we are lifting each other up and even through times where it feels like, especially in the world right now, which just feels really heavy. And so, God, we're also just asking.

[Co-host or Guest]

For your protection in our days, God, and protection over our families. Jesus, we thank you for the truth of who you are. Thank you that your spirit dwells inside of us.

[Ali Yost]

And God, we just pray for more fire today, God, I I actually just declare more of a fire over my brothers and sisters right now in Jesus name. I pray for a heightening of courage.

[Co-host or Guest]

And boldness and discernment.

[Ali Yost]

I pray for a heightening of just wisdom, God, and I pray, Holy Spirit, that you intercede and you also just help translate when we're sitting down with the word, God, I pray that as we're reading the Word, it just penetrates into our souls, God, and we just ask for growth.

[Co-host or Guest]

We ask for you to continue to.

[Ali Yost]

Grow us into more and more like.

[Co-host or Guest]

You, Lord, we pray all these things in your name. Amen. Amen. Okay, now let's take our communion.

[Ali Yost]

This one has been floating around in my purse for weeks. So it's a little smushy. He's a little crinkly. It reminds me of that meme of a water bottle. I don't know if you guys have seen this. It's been floating around for neons. I think I saw it for the first time when I was in high school, which was like 10, over 10 years ago, of the water bottle, like, when it's, like, kind of crushed and it looks like this. And I think the meme is something stupid, like when somebody tickles your neck and you're like, that's what he looks like. He just is kind of like. But that's okay. It doesn't take away from the power of the blood. Amen. All right, so grab your juice, grab your bread. Grab whatever you. If you have little communion cups. Queen king. Yes. I get mine off of Amazon. I buy them in bulk. I have more on the way, actually, as we speak. But even if you don't, I. I.

[Co-host or Guest]

Think most things could work if you have juice and bread nearby. I'm just breaking my bread up in little pieces. Okay. Jesus, we thank you for your sacrifice. God, thank you for the body. Thank you for taking on all of our sins. Lord, thank you that we are forgiven for our sins because of you. And so, Jesus, we just love you today. We honor you and we recognize all that you are in Jesus name. And we take the blood. We plead this blood over our bodies. God, thank you for the blood that heals us. Mend our hearts. God, I declare healing over my body. My brother or sister on the other. On the other side their body. And we just declare healing and protection. God, in Jesus name. It's good. Thank you, Jesus. Okay. Okay.

[Ali Yost]

We haven't done a style of one of these episodes in a while, but I figured we could just do kind of a little Q A bouncing around from maybe a few different topics, touching on each one. I don't know if you guys. I feel like you do. We've gotten some good feedback when it comes to these kinds of episodes, but yeah, I figured we could just do like a Q A style episode, cover some questions and topics that you guys have. I ran a poll on my Instagram, as I always do, and I. I will say a lot of them I feel like we've already covered, but some of them I think we could dive more into as well. So Emma asks how to know if God is bringing you into a new season I love that question. And I really. I. I will always just speak from my own experience because I feel like this could have a few different answers, I think, to this question. But I think that the first thing that comes to my mind on. On how I know that God is bringing me into a new season is when. Is when it feels like there's actually a shift. I would say, like. And if you are somebody who has walked through change before or you've felt yourself walking out of a season and potentially even walking into a new one, for me, I. I feel a shift first. And when I say that, it's like, I just. Something. It's got to be spiritual. It has to be supernatural. But it's just like something will just kind of switch in my atmosphere of just, like, my everyday life. Something will shift in my spirit where it'll just feel like things are different, even if, like, it doesn't look super different in the natural just yet. It's like, ooh, like the seasons have changed. You know, it's the best way that I can really even describe it, too, is like, when you feel the air change from, you know, summertime to going into the fall, and it's like the air is a little bit more crisp. Like, that's the only kind of comparison, metaphorically, that I could compare it to. But it's like all of a sudden it's just like the air is different. It's the first thing I will. I. I'll feel it first. And then I think the other thing too, when changing seasons, because I think that this happens with every time you walk into a new season, is obviously, if you're walking into another season, it's because that the Lord has really good things, you know, in that next season. And he's like, okay, you're ready. We're gonna walk into this next era of your life, however you wanna say it. And I'll notice that there's just, like, a lot of grief in my heart. Like, things will be then changing in the natural, like in my personal life, where maybe certain dynamics will start to change or. Yeah, like, there will just be, like, a grace that's lifted for the things that used to feel like it had so much grace, where it was just easy. And then all of a sudden it's just like. They're like, the grace has left. I hope that this is translating and you. You guys understand what I'm saying, But I've seen this happen in my life a few times where it was like, when things were just working and it was Just flowing. When you're in the will of God, it's just like. It's just easier, easy. You know, you're. You're flowing in the current of him, and it's just like, okay, we're vibing. And then all of a sudden, when you feel that shift in the spirit, when things kind of just, like, change, you also feel the grace lift from that very thing. And it'll almost feel like there might even be a little part of you that's still trying to do a bit of a tug of war where you're like, wait a minute. But this is what's always worked. Like, why do I feel like I'm. Why do I feel like there's a little bit of a resistance? Or why do I feel like I'm hitting a block all of a sudden? Or why does it feel like it's not as easy anymore? Why has my heart almost changed a bit? Like, I want this to keep working. Why is it not working? And I feel like that's when we have to sit down with God and be like, okay, God, are you changing the season that I'm in right now? Because this doesn't feel like the same grace that's always had. And granted, there's also such thing as spiritual warfare. I'm not gonna say that every time something feels difficult, it means that God is. Is changing your season or that the grace has lifted. I do think that it takes a level of discernment with the Lord, too, to be like, hey, is this warfare? Is this resistance from the enemy? Or is this you, like, truly guiding me in a different direction? And I feel like the best way to know whether it's God guiding you into another season is if in that surrender of you being like, okay, God, I Like, if this is you changing the course of my life, if this is you changing the course of my relationships, my career, what, like, whatever that looks like. I ask, Lord, that you overwhelm me with a sense of peace. And I pray, too, that you make it so clear that this is actually your will and it's nothing else. And God takes those prayers so seriously because he loves you that much and he doesn't want you to sit in a place of confusion, because confusion does not come from God. And so I think that's the other thing, is that if you're feeling, like, this weird tug of war where you're, like, really confused, I wouldn't say that that's from God, because, again, there. There has to be, like, a grace where it's like, no There's a lot of change happening right now, and I'm kind of grieving it, and I'm feeling the weight of. Of how there's just, like, not a grace for the season anymore. And now I feel like I'm going through a transition. But for some reason, in my grief, I still have peace. You know, that that's God. But if. If you're in a season of, like, grief and confusion and you just, like, don't know which way you're going, I would truly seek clarity from God and be like, lord, I need you to make it so crystal clear that this is from you right now. And if it's not, give me the wisdom and the discernment that this is simply just resistance of the enemy and this is just warfare and that I need to push and I need to continue to lean on you through this, you know? So I would say those are two of the. Those are a couple of the main things that I will feel and see when I know that God is walking me into a new season. And also, I think a change of heart. Like, if your heart is, like, changing, it's so. I mean, God, it says it in scripture that he holds the power to harden hearts and soften hearts. And I have seen the Lord, I mean, completely change my heart for a season where I'm like, yeah, I mean, this has served me really well and I've loved it, but I, for some reason, I just feel it in my spirit and in my heart that I'm not supposed to be in this season anymore. And as much as it's sad, like, God can really change the desires of your heart to get you on course with his will and. Or continue, you know, your course with Him. And so that's another thing I've noticed in myself when. When I'm walking into a new season is. It's almost like God is, like, preparing or has already prepared my heart to receive that new season. So even with me maybe still wanting to cling on familiar, the familiar parts of whatever season he's walking me out of, like, my heart will still. My heart has still been open and curious about where he's bringing me. And that's been undeniable for me sometimes where I'm like, no, I can't even force this even if I wanted to. Like, I want to, but I can't, because he's just changed my heart, and I can feel it. And sometimes I don't even know what he's changed my heart to, but I just know that my heart is not in this anymore. And he's leading me somewhere else. And so there is, like, a serious level of trust and faith that has to come with that. Because from my experience, too, like, going into new seasons, it's not always, like an immediate, like, transition. It's not like I'm just like, in an old season, and then the next day I'm in a completely new season. Sometimes there's like, a transition period where I have no idea where God is taking me or what's going on. And that is more times than not, in my opinion. I don't. It's. I don't actually think God has ever just directly planted me into the next season. And I'm like, okay, here we go. We're ready. Typically, there is a bit of, like, a. A walk in between this season and the next one. And so there's such opportunity of just growth with the Lord and learning to have more faith in him and trusting that even if you have no idea what he's changed your heart for, like, you don't know yet, Trusting that it's for a reason and it's for something good and that it's. It's because he wants to grow you and he wants to take you onto that next step with Him. But I don't know if that feedback was helpful. I pray that it was. But those are some things that come to my mind right off the top of my head of ways that I know God is bringing me into a new season. Okay. Zoe said, and over 200 people liked this one. So this one is doubts in Christianity. And I feel like that's such a vague question. I'm going to take one specific route or POV here, and I pray that it speaks to some of you guys, because I'm like, I'm thinking about why somebody would doubt Christianity. And. And I. The first thing that comes to my brain is I think maybe a major doubt in Christianity is whether or not God will actually come through for you. Or let's say that you have been trying Jesus and you've been trying God, and maybe you expected or wanted quicker results or, I don't know, like, maybe people had misled you to believe that as soon as you start following God, everything will be hunky dory and beautiful and amazing. And to be honest, I. I don't know what my expectations were going into Christianity and, like, really taking Jesus so seriously, other than I. I believed that he could help me. And I also. I didn't have any expectations that it was going to be really easy but maybe some people do, because I. I feel like, unfortunately, there can be a pocket of the church that paints it out to be this thing that's like. And once you give your life to God, everything is going to be great. And everything is great when. Once you give your life to God. But when I say that sentence, it's not in the ways that we would hope. It's not great in the sense of, like, walking with the Lord means that you're not going to endure any suffering. Walking with the Lord doesn't mean that you won't still battle with your mental health sometimes. Walking with the Lord doesn't mean that you won't still have temptations or fall to sin. So when we say that walking with the Lord is great, it is, and he is always good. But I think that there's this expectation that we put to those words of like, great and good being perfect, and that we won't feel any pain anymore. And the truth of the matter is that we will always endure suffering and pain as long as we are here on Earth because we live in a broken world that we have created for ourselves. Honestly, that was never a part of God's plan. It was never a part of his plan. The only reason that we have to endure the things that we do that are painful and hurtful and why awful things happen in the world is because we have free will and because God loved us enough. He loved us enough to give us the choice to make our own choices. And it's crazy. Like when you go back to Genesis 1 and you see when sin was introduced to humanity for the first time through Adam and Eve, going against what God had warned them not to do. That's the other thing is, and we've mentioned this on the podcast, is God is such a merciful God, and he will always warn us and say, hey, I. I just want you to know, like, I'm giving you this gift of free will, but I also don't want to just set you up for failure because that wouldn't make me a loving father. And so I'm gonna give you this freedom to make whatever decisions you want. But I'm going to warn you and say, just don't do these things. Just don't touch these things, because it will lead you to death. That's what. That's literally what God said to Adam and Eve is he said, just don't eat from this tree of the knowledge of good and evil. You can enjoy the entire Garden of Eden. You can have everything in this garden except just don't touch this tree, cuz it's just not for you. And I think the question too that sometimes people have is like, well, why did God even put the tree in the Garden of Eden anyway then? Like, if it was just going to kill them, it does kind of feel like he, like, set them up, you know. And I think that that's a question that I had too. In the beginning. I was just like, well then why did God even bother to put a tree in there if he knew that it was going to kill them? Um, and then I heard a pastor speaking in a sermon, I don't know how long ago, months ago, talking about like even just, you know, if you look at the way that God has, has created the world and how everything plays off of each other, there are plenty of things in this world that would kill us. There are poisonous things. There's even fruit that you could eat. Us humans that we could eat that would kill us. There's certain, you know, venomous animals and creatures and insects that could bite us and kill us. And it's like we can look at that and be like, God, why would you ever put these things on Earth if it was just going to kill us? But the truth is like, all of those things serve a different purpose though. When you look at the ecosystem and how everything intertwines, like there's a reason for this and then there's a reason for that. And then God was thoughtful enough to say, okay, but if this didn't exist, this wouldn't be able to. And so you look at all these things and you realize that there is a purpose to all of it, but some things are just not for us. And that's okay. But it, but, but I believe that that tree was put in the Garden of Eden because it had a purpose. It just wasn't supposed to be for man to eat from. And so obviously Adam and Eve ate from it anyway. And then sin was introduced into the world. So anyway, I go all the way back to that time because it is there that it started with the brokenness and, and it's been a rippling effect ever since, where it's actually like in our selfishness of doing whatever we want to do, we really think that it's just going to impact. We're like, this is just for me. But the truth of the matter is like, and we've seen it in generations. You see the generational trauma and the generational, you know, sin and things that just get passed on into generations and through our bloodlines and stuff. And it all trickles back to the beginning of time. But it's like, it's all because of the choices that we make. And so the hurt and the pain that we feel from the world is just like this rippling effect of what we've done to one another. And it's not just an us thing, like, the decisions that we make. The sin that we choose to dance with affects humanity. It affects our children, it affects our people. And so, yeah, I think that a lot of people can question, like, how. How can God allow those. Such. All of those things in the world? But the truth is, is he loved us enough to give us a choice. Because what would love be if it wasn't a choice? I mean, you think about, like, how a stranger could go out of their way to love somebody that they didn't have to love. Or, I mean, these are very simple examples, but, like, it kind of takes our breath away sometimes when we see somebody deciding to go out of their way to pay for somebody else's meal or be like, you know, I. I got your coffee. Don't worry about it. Why is that so shocking to us? Because they didn't have to. Why didn't they have to? Because they had free will. They have a choice. They don't have to love. And so I just think love wouldn't be nearly as impactful if we didn't first have the choice to love. If it was the only choice. Okay, how hard was that? You know what I mean? But it's the fact that, like, we have two choices. We either have the choice to love or we have the choice to hate or to be selfish, arrogant, conceited, manipulative. Like, there are choices that we can make every day. And so anyway, how did I get on that tangent? I don't know. But, yeah, I just think that that could be a real. A real doubt that people could have. Going into Christianity is expecting everything to be good, but it's just not that. The. Like, what I was saying is the truth of the matter is that we live in a broken world because of all of that and because of us. And so that won't happen until we're in heaven. You know, that. That perfect walk, that perfect life where there's no pain or suffering, where the Lord will wipe every tear from our eyes. That won't happen until we're in heaven. And that's okay. That's why we need him every day in our life here on Earth. Because it is hard. And so it is great. Once you give your life to Jesus, because I can't imagine walking through a broken world, because the world is broken no matter. No matter what, whether you know Jesus or not. So you're going to enter the suffering or not. And so for me, and you know, my own story was that I was sick of walking through such suffering and emptiness, and I felt pretty meaningless as well without having Jesus, like. Or there was just something in me that needed to be filled. And so it's not that my life has gotten any easier, but I do believe that the weight and the heaviness and the burdens and the shame and the sin that. That I was carrying on top of the hardship of life made it pretty unbearable. Like, I. I was becoming an empty, empty, empty shell of myself, trying to carry the weight of my life, the weight of the things that happened to me or the things that I had done. And so having a Savior, having Jesus by my side has not made my life easier, but he has helped carry the burdens and the heaviness that comes with the reality of life and the reality of being a human and making mistakes and saving me from myself and my selfishness. And so I. I will literally never turn back, ever, because I don't. I don't ever want to walk through life without Him. And the truth of the matter is, like, the world has a lot of options of things that could help us with the burdens of our life, but the truth of the matter is that all of those options are so temporary, and they also can only go so far. I believe that anyone who is coping with the burdens of life and trying to go through life outside of Jesus, like, I do believe that there is help in those things, but it's not nearly the freedom that you can receive with Jesus because He is the only one that can carry those burdens of our life. And I can say that because I've. I've lived it and, and I've experienced it. And I. I'm actually very grateful that the Lord let me see those things and taste those things. As painful as it was in a lot of the seasons that I was in, uh, they sucked. And they're really painful to even think about sometimes. But I'm grateful that he let me walk through it so that I can sit here and say, yeah, I'm not. I'm not just like a hypocrite who's sitting here being like, yeah, I've had a perfect life my whole time. And, you know, I've. I've faithfully walked with Jesus perfectly my whole life. It's just not true. Like, I didn't even actually truly know who he was until two and a half years ago, you know? And so I'm grateful that I had those seasons of darkness, as painful as it was and as empty as it felt and as foggy and gray as it seemed, because I now can see the contrast of what it's like to walk with the Lord and what it's like to be completely alone in this world, you know? And so, yeah, I think. I think that doubt is real, you know, But I also think that if. If you go into this with expectations of just like instant. Yeah, like that instant gratification, I think that that is something that's so dangerous in our generation and it's. It doesn't have to just apply to our faith journeys. I mean, that can apply to all things. I just think, you know, with Doordash and Amazon and guys, I just ordered a couch and I'm so grateful and excited about it. It's going to be delivered in my house in 48 hours. What is that? Like, literally, what is that? Actually, thank you, God. But also at the same time, I'm like, it used to take, like, months to get a couch, and so it's great, but it's also, I. I feel like it's a bit dangerous because it's created this instant gratification, this instant, like, serotonin boost in us, dopamine, whatever that is. Like just that instant gratification of getting things so quickly. That when it comes to our spiritual growth or walking with Jesus, I don't know, I just feel like maybe that could bleed into our faith where it's like, okay, well, why aren't things changing, God? Why haven't you taken this thing out of my life? Why haven't you brought breakthrough in this way? Like, why do I still feel depressed? Why do I still get these waves of anxiousness? God, does this still happen? Like, I thought that you said that you were the way truth and life and that my life would get better once I started walking with you. Why are these things not happening? And I just think that that that could be another reason that people would doubt. Because, you know, if they're. If they're walking with the Lord for a few months, and even that's why it's so. It's so important for us to be so honest about all of our walks. Because I just don't believe that anyone could actually, like, testify and say, yeah, I started walking with Jesus and like, everything was amazing and life was so good. And then that's it. And then, and then the end, you know, and unfortunately, I do think that some people paint it out to be that way because I think there are good intentions in it. I think that the reason why people would paint out the journey of, of walking with Jesus that way is to get people to give him a chance because he is so good and he's faithful and it's like if we could just get people to give him a chance. And it's, it's game over. And I get that. But it does feel a little car salesy. It does feel a little bit like when you're shopping for something online and it's being pictured to be this incredible place. Like, okay, just because I was just recently like shopping for a house, for a home to move into. The thing that's so frustrating to me is like seeing the photos on the website and everything is in like 0.5. Everything is made to look really big and spacious and beautiful and the lighting is gorge, whatever. And then I go to freaking tour the place and it looks nothing like that. It looks nothing like that because they, you know, they did something to the photos. They used a little bit of like a fish lens, a wider lens to make it look really big and spacious. And then they AI generated like a really blue sky out the windows and trees to make it look like the lighting is beautiful and bright. And then you walk in and you're like, okay, this is a tiny little shack. What is going on here? And it's that kind of stuff that frustrates me because it's like, I understand. It just feels manipulative. It just feels manipulative. And the thing is, is like, I believe I want to give the body the benefit of the doubt and say that I don't believe that. It's like people are intentionally trying to manipulate. Well, some people might be, but I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt and say it's just because they know the truth of Jesus. And they're like, hey, if we can just get people through the door and we can get people to come, then that's all we need. And I get that, but I still feel like that's a bit manipulative and it's not being honest. And so painting Jesus out to be this like, life is going to be perfect. All the burdens of your life are just gonna instantly go away. Is giving the.05 photos of this house and then they show up and they're like, okay, no, like, yeah, this is, this is great, but this Is not what I thought it was gonna be. And the thing is, I'm not comparing Jesus to a dinky little shack.

[Co-host or Guest]

Okay?

[Ali Yost]

I wanna preface that. He is the best thing ever. He is the best thing ever. And so when we say that about him, it's the truth. But what I'm trying to communicate, and I hope I'm doing a good job at it right now, God forgive me, I'm. I'm trying my best, but I just think the hype of like, over. Over promising that it's going to be perfect is really dangerous. Because if people come into this with the wrong expectations and we're not telling them the full truth, how about that? It's like, that's not dishonest. Completely dishonest. But also, if it's not a full truth, it's probably a lie. Like, we're just lying. So telling the full truth of what it's truly like to walk with Jesus and letting people know the real expectations going into it, the good and also the hard, I think is the best way for people to hang on. You know, I think people can start doubting their faith and their journey with Jesus. Or, like, I mean, guys, the damage can go so far. It can even go as far as people being like, okay, well, I see all these other people where apparently it was. Was so great for them. Everything in their lives were fixed. They immediately got financial freedom. They immediately were delivered from their addiction. They were immediately. And the thing is, is, like, some of those stories can happen, but if we are not telling the full truth of our testimony and we're not being honest about also, like, yeah, I walked through the fire too, though. But Jesus, thank God because I would have been walking through that fire alone. So. But Jesus, you know, he gave me hope. He gave me courage. He gave me strength, like supernatural strength. I actually probably would have never been able to get through that season with my sanity, with still having my sanity if it wasn't for Jesus. I needed his strength through that season. Glory to God. He's the only one who could have gotten me through that. But, yeah, if we're not being honest about those parts, people could think that they're broken. They could think that God doesn't love them enough. They could. They could be like, okay, it worked so great for everybody else, but not me. So apparently God doesn't love me. He doesn't hear me. He doesn't see me. This Christianity thing, I don't know, is he even real? I don't even know. Is Jesus even real? I thought I I thought he was real, but maybe I was just caught up in this weird swirl. And it wasn't even Jesus from the beginning. Like, it can be so damaging. And so. Okay, I don't know where that rant came from, but, yeah, I think that that's a real thing too. Is like, people could doubt Christianity if they go into it with the wrong expectations, because we set them up for what we thought would be success, but it was actually failure. They're looking back on their journey. The last four months, they've been under the most spiritual warfare of their life because the devil wants to hang on to their soul for dear life. And I believe even in the beginning of our. The beginnings of our journeys are like, some of the hardest times, because that's when you're like, God is, like, ripping all these scales from your eyes, and you're seeing all the ways that you've been living in your life, and you're like, oh, my gosh, God, like, I have been so wrong. Like, the ways that I've been living is actually. I've been fooled. I've been deceived. And you're, like, unlearning the things that maybe you've been walking in for potentially your entire life. There's sanctification that comes with that of God just, like, stripping just, like, all the things that need to. He's refining and he's polishing you. And, like, honestly, I think the beginning part of our journeys with Jesus is, like, the most challenging. I think those are the times that we need the most community and. And we really need to help our brothers and sisters who are. Who are just coming into their faith for that reason, because it is. It's hard. And there's a lot of things that you start to see for what it is, and you're like, whoa. And also, the Enemy is never, ever, ever happy about salvation. Like, if somebody has been. Has. Has just given their life to Jesus, I don't see why the Enemy wouldn't try hard while they're still a baby. They're like a little baby, newborn infant, baby Christian to come in and try to snatch them back before they're strong enough to discern, before they're strong enough to know any better, you know? And so also, yeah, I just think it's important, too, that if there are people around you that, you know are new to their faith, just support them, love them, pray for them. Like, show up for them, be there for them, help them, refine them. Like, we have to be there to support each other. Otherwise, people will start to doubt their faith because it's hard to do by yourself. You know, I'm so grateful that, you know, the first year of my journey with the Lord, I was technically alone. Like, it was just me and Jesus in the middle of my apartment in West Hollywood. But at the same time, like, God was introducing me to people, even virtually. There were some friends that I was making online believers who, you know, did what I did of just being on the Internet, on social media. And so even that I was like, I felt so seen and loved in is just being able to, like, have people walking with me, even virtually. But, yeah.

[Co-host or Guest]

So anyway, hopefully that was helpful.

[Ali Yost]

Okay. Kelsey says, which I think we've talked about this on the podcast a couple times. I'm not actually sure, but we'll do a little touch on this. Kelsey says, the Sabbath. How do we actually follow the Sabbath? So this is my POV and my understanding of just what I've learned from the Lord about Sabbath and how we're supposed to honor the Sabbath. This is just what I do. I don't know if most people, whatever, you can agree with it or not. That's okay. That's okay. But this is just take it or leave it, is what I'm saying. Take it or leave it. But I believe that the Sabbath is honored in the best way that you feel rested. I believe that God created the Sabbath to just rest. God just wants us to rest. I believe that. So whatever it is that that truly brings you rest. And also, I think that that's the reason I'm like, take this or leave it is because I think that the Sabbath can really vary per person. I think that the Sabbath can be personalized per person, whatever that looks like for you. Of what brings you the most life and what makes you feel the most recharged. What brings you the most rest? Because I believe that the point of Sabbath is for God. He's just encouraging his children to take a break. Just take a break. And if you're not really sure what that looks like, I think the best thing you could do is just sit down with the Lord and pray and be like, okay, God, let's make a list of things I should do on my Sabbath and things I shouldn't do on my Sabbath and let him be really honest with you. And sometimes for some of us, it's like, I won't be on my phone all day. Like, if you know that that is not something that actually brings you true rest. True rest. Like, we can distract ourselves with our phones and we can, like, scroll on them and it can be entertaining. But do we feel restful? Like, do we feel rested after we've been scrolling on our phone for hours? I can't say I feel super rested. I'll say I feel entertained. And I'm like, okay, that was kind of fun. But I wouldn't say I'm. I feel like this breath of fresh air has washed over my body and I'm, like, refreshed after scrolling on my phone. I actually kind of feel, like, dumb. I feel, like, stupid. I just feel like my brain is, like, filled with anxiousness and, like, clutter, actually. Because the other thing too with scrolling is you never really know what you're going to be fed. And so as much as it probably would be nice to think that we would be fed all good things, you're, like, also being fed all this information that maybe you just didn't need for that day. Maybe you scrolled past something in the news and you're like, wow, okay, that was really heavy. Or you see an image or there's a lustful post that comes up and now you're being. It's like, I don't know, maybe we just don't scroll on our Sabbath. That could be a rule that you set for yourself. But like, yeah, just being honest with yourself and with God and sit down and be like, okay, Lord, what are some things that are really fun to me that I enjoy and it leaves me restful. If that's going on a hike, great. If that's being a freaking couch potato and watching your favorite show, great. If that's reading your favorite book and taking a bubble bath, if that's go getting a massage. If that's hanging out with your dog, if that's hanging out with your friends, if that's socializing, if that's hermitting, like, whatever that looks like it's one day out of your week, but whatever brings you rest, I think that that is the best way to follow Sabbath. To honor Sabbath is to rest and be in the presence of God. I actually probably should have led with that of all things, though, personally, a Sabbath for me is like, I need to be with Jesus all day. Like, I need to be with Jesus all day. I need to be with Jesus every day. And I. And I do my best to make time for him every single day. But my Sabbath, I know for a fact, is going to be the day that I am like, God, fill me up, fill my cup. So it is like overflowing for the week so I can just overflow Your goodness and your love and your grace to the people around me in my. In my work ethic, in the way that I show up this week, it's a. It's a really important time to let the Lord pour into you so that you can be overflowing. And it's a good. It's a good reset, too, of just being in his presence. So however way that looks like for you, that could be worshiping, that could be putting worship music on your tv, that could be reading the Word. We should probably read the Word on our Sabbath. For sure, you should read the Bible. But, yeah, resting and being in his presence. And the cool thing is, is it says in Scripture, Jesus says, come to me, all who are burdened and heavy, and come to me and I will give you rest. It is in his presence. It is in the presence of Jesus where we actually receive rest. And so I actually think also with partnering with all the things that you.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Love to do that gives you rest.

[Ali Yost]

I think just even being in his presence will give you the rest that you need. Let's also make sure that we're not focusing too much on all the tasks and the things that bring us rest and. And make sure that we're also just still looking at Jesus, because He is. Is the one that can give us the ultimate rest. But, yeah, long story short, be in his presence and do the things that bring you rest. Amen. I think that's the best way to honor Sabbath. Okay, I wanted to do one more question with you guys, but my phone won't load. The poll won't load but a word. So instead I was like, okay, God, give me one more question. Lord, I just pray that you directly give me one. Then since we can't look up any. I'm actually just hearing the same word playing over and over in my mind right now. And the word is simplify. Yeah, simplify. And I'm like, simplify what?

[Co-host or Guest]

God.

[Ali Yost]

And I really believe that he wants to encourage us to, like, if any of us have been struggling with maybe making our relationship with God too complex, maybe there's been too much pressure. There's too much, like, religion. I just feel the Lord encouraging us to simplify it. And it's funny. I actually was at. I went to Bethel Church. I don't know if you guys are familiar. I'd never been before. I listened to a lot of their music. I listened to a lot of Bethel worship. And so I went for a conference that they were doing called Open Heavens. And I guess they've been doing it forever. To be honest, I'm, like, very new to, like, Bethel Church. I guess, like, me going there, I was learning so much about the church in itself. I don't have a lot of experience with their ministry. Just, Honestly, just their, like, worship music I've mostly been listening to, but nothing else other than that. Anyway, I go. I will say, it was so incredible. That's like, for a whole nother day, honestly. But it was amazing. And it was funny, though, because getting in these environments, they are okay. Bethel Church, if you're familiar. If you're not. If you're familiar, then this makes sense. But the culture there is very offensive in the sense of, like, they are very charismatic, Very charismatic. And I think a lot of people can walk into those environments and feel really offended or feel really uncomfortable. And I think that that's totally normal and okay. Especially when you're not familiar with those environments. I do believe it's the Holy Spirit was moving. Like, regardless of whether I was like, okay, I've never seen that before or not, who am I to judge? Like, I'm not the judge. God is. And so it was really. It was actually really cool to experience. And I didn't feel unsafe. It just. I think sometimes when you see things that. Or experience things that you're not as familiar with, our first instinct is to be kind of scared and freaked out. I think that that's obviously why even the angels in the Bible were like, hey, don't be afraid. Because when we are not familiar with something and it's. And it's bigger than us, it can feel really, really freaky. And so what was the point of me sharing that? The point of me sharing that was that I felt like. And I even received a couple words from people while I was there. One of the words being to not take myself so seriously and to not take God so seriously. And I'd like to say that I'm pretty good at that most times. I'm pretty good at not taking God too, too, too seriously in the sense of. I'm not saying, like, a lack of respect or fear for him, because I always have that. But I just think sometimes I put a lot of pressure on myself and a lot of pressure on our relationship where I'm. I'm not just being with him and I'm not treating it like a relationship that should be simple. Like, God is so vastly complex, actually, but also so simple at the same time where all he truly wants is our friendship. He wants our loyalty and he wants our love. And then He Also wants to. To give that in return. And so I don't know if this is speaking to anybody, but I. I use that testimony of, like, even using myself as an example that I is. It's tempting even for me sometimes to, like, put way too much, make it too complex with God, where it's actually, it's. It's simple with Him. And so I just feel him encouraging us to simplify our relationships with Him. And if there's a question of how, I think the best person to ask that question would be the Lord, I think, sitting down with him and being like, okay, God, how can I simplify my relationship with you? In what ways have I made it complicated? In what ways have I made it so that I am just striving and trying to show you that I'm worthy? In what ways have I been, like, walking around like a circus monkey, being like, you know, no, I'm this and I'm that, and I'm good, and I'm, you know, like, how can I show up and just be a daughter today or just be a son? And I think even that statement in itself could make a lot of us emotional. And I think the reason why we feel emotional, even imagining that of just being an heir, like, just being a daughter, just being a son of his, is because that's what we were made for. We were made to rest in his presence, and we were made to have a simple yet beautiful love with our dad, you know? So, anyway, that is our word of the week. I say we all adopt. That is like, to just simplify. Simple. It's simple.

[Co-host or Guest]

Being in relationship with God, it's simple.

[Ali Yost]

You guys, I love you so much. Thank you for joining us for another episode today. Hey, can we do something cool today before we go? Can we do something cool? Can we show somebody how cool Jesus is? Can we walk more like him, talk more like him, be more like Jesus today? I'm proud of y'. All. I'm grateful for you.

[Co-host or Guest]

I'm so grateful for you. And, yeah, I hope that this episode spoke to you.

[Ali Yost]

And I will see you guys next week.

[Co-host or Guest]

Bye.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Are some of y' all still listening? Okay, if you're still here, that means.

[Ali Yost]

You'Re a real one, which is why.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

I'm about to share this with you. If you've already caught up on all the episodes so far and you don't.

[Ali Yost]

Want to wait until next Friday for.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

A new one, I have really good news for you. Subscribe to our Patreon to get early access to the episodes every week. Early access to merch launches or any other other exciting news, and receive personalized encouraging messages or Bible verses from us. Subscribe to Our patreon at www.patreon.com backslash c backslash cwcoi I do also want to mention that there is a way to give to the podcast, so if you ever feel led to donate, it blesses me so much and it helps allow the podcast to keep running. You can donate to our PayPal at www.paypal. me backslash CWCOI we appreciate y' all.

[Ali Yost]

And we love you so, so much.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Do thoughts like Did I really mean that prayer? Or what if God's disappointed in me? Replay over and over in your head?

[Ali Yost]

Or do you keep worrying that you're.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Not believing hard enough, that every unwanted thought might be blasphemy, or that you've somehow lost your salvation and no matter how many times you pray, read and repent, you can't shake the anxiety. Experiences like that could be signs of religious ocd, but because OCD is so misunderstood, a lot of people don't even realize that it can actually latch onto religious beliefs. Real OCD is nothing like the stereotypes of liking things organized. It's a serious and highly misunderstood condition where unwanted and distressing thoughts get stuck on repeat in your head and you feel compelled to engage in certain behaviors to try to make them stop. These unwanted thoughts are called intrusive thoughts. They're often disturbing or taboo and feel completely out of character. They can be about anything, but often focus on people or things that we care about, like our faith, making them hard to ignore. People with OCD often feel driven to do certain mental or physical behaviors like constantly seeking reassurance, overanalyzing or repeating prayers until they are quote perfect to try to cope with the anxiety that these thoughts cause.

[Ali Yost]

But the thing is is that these.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Behaviors only provide short term relief and when OCD goes after your beliefs, it can leave you feeling guilty, scared or disconnected from God. But there is hope. OCD is highly treatable with the right kind of specialized therapy. What works for OCD is ERP therapy or Exposure and Response Prevention. NOCD is the world's leading provider for OCD treatment. All of their licensed therapists truly understand OCD and specialize in ERP therapy. Therapy with no CD is 100% virtual, covered by insurance for over 155 million Americans and includes support between sessions so you're never facing OCD alone. To learn more about starting OCD therapy with no CD, go to nocd.com and book a free Call to learn more.

[Ali Yost]

About how they can help you.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

That's N O C D calm.

[Ali Yost]

Okay. Zoe said, and over 200 people liked this one. So this one is doubts in Christianity. And I feel like that's such a vague question. I'm going to take one specific route or POV here, and I pray that it speaks to some of you guys, because I'm like, I'm thinking about why somebody would doubt Christianity. And I. The first thing that comes to my brain is I think maybe a major doubt in Christianity is whether or not God will actually come through for you. Or let's say that you have been trying Jesus and you've been trying God, and maybe you expected or wanted quicker results or, I don't know, like, maybe people had misled you to believe that as soon as you start following God, everything will be hunky dory and beautiful and amazing. And to be honest, I, I don't know what my expectations were going into Christianity and like, really taking Jesus so seriously, other than I. I believed that he could help me. And I also, I didn't have any expectations that it was going to be really easy, but maybe some people do, because I. I feel like, unfortunately there can be a pocket of the church that paints it out to be this thing that's like. And once you give your life to God, everything is going to be great. And everything is great when. Once you give your life to God. But when I say that sentence, it's not in the ways that we would hope. It's not great in the sense of, like, walking with the Lord means that you're not going to endure any suffering. Walking with the Lord doesn't mean that you won't still battle with your mental health sometimes. Walking with the Lord doesn't mean that you won't still have temptations or fall to sin. So when we say that walking with the Lord is great, it is. And he is always good. But I think that there's this expectation that we put to those words of like, great and good, being perfect, and that we won't feel any pain anymore. And the truth of the matter is that we will always endure suffering and pain as long as we are here on earth because we live in a broken world that we have created for ourselves. Honestly, that was never a part of God's plan. It was never a part of his plan. The only reason that we have to endure the things that we do that are painful and hurtful and why awful things happen in the world is because we have free will and because God loved us enough. He loved us enough to give us the choice to make our own choices. And it's crazy. Like when you go back to Genesis 1 and you see when sin was introduced to humanity for the first time through Adam and Eve, going against what God had warned them not to do. That's the other thing is, and we've mentioned this on the podcast, is God is such a merciful God, and he will always warn us and say, hey, I just want you to know, like, I'm giving you this gift of free will, but I also don't want to just set you up for failure, because that wouldn't make me a loving father. And so I'm going to give you this freedom to make whatever decisions you want. But I'm going to warn you and say, just don't do these things. Just don't touch these things, because it will lead you to death. That's what. That's literally what God said to Adam and Eve is he said, just don't eat from this tree of the knowledge of good and evil. You can enjoy the entire Garden of Eden. You can have everything in this garden, except just don't touch this tree, because it's just not for you. And I think the question, too, that sometimes people have is like, well, why did God even put the tree in the Garden of Eden anyway then? Like, if it was just going to kill them, it does kind of feel like he, like, set them up, you know? And I think that that's a question that I had, too. In the beginning. I was just like, well, then why did God even bother to put a tree in there if he knew that it was going to kill them? And then I heard a pastor speaking in a sermon, I don't know how long ago, months ago, talking about, like, even just, you know, if you look at the way that God has. Has created the world and how everything plays off of each other. There are plenty of things in this world that would kill us. There are poisonous things. There's even fruit that you could eat us humans that we could eat that would kill us. There's certain, you know, venomous animals and creatures and insects that could bite us and kill us. And it's like, we can look at that and be like, God, why would you ever put these things on Earth if it was just going to kill us? But the truth is, like, all of those things serve a different purpose, though. When you look at the ecosystem and how everything intertwines, like, there's. There's a reason for this, and then there's a reason for that. And then God was thoughtful enough to say, okay, but if this didn't exist, this wouldn't be able to. And so you look at all these things and you realize that there is a purpose to all of it, but some things are just not for us. And that's okay. But it, but, but I believe that that tree was put in the Garden of Eden because it had a purpose. It just wasn't supposed to be for man to eat from. And so obviously Adam and Eve ate from it anyway. And then sin was introduced into the world. So anyway, I go all the way back to that time because it is there that it started with the brokenness. And, and it's been a rippling effect ever since, where it's actually like in our selfishness of doing whatever we want to do. We really think that it's just going to impact. We're like, this is just for me. But the truth of the matter is, like, and we've seen it in generations. You see the generational trauma and the generational, you know, sin and things that just get passed on into generations and through our bloodlines and stuff. And it all trickles back to the beginning of time. But it's like, it's all because of the choices that we make. And so the hurt and the pain that we feel from the world is just like this rippling effect of what we've done to one another. And it's not just an us thing, like the decisions that we make. The sin that we choose to dance with affects humanity. It affects our children, it affects our people. And so, yeah, I think that a lot of people can question, like, how, how can God allow those. Such. All of those things in the world? But the truth is, is he loved us enough to give us a choice. Because what would love be if it wasn't a choice? I mean, you think about, like, how a stranger could go out of their way to love somebody that they didn't have to love. Or, I mean, these are very simple examples, but, like, it kind of takes our breath away sometimes when we see somebody deciding to go out of their way to pay for somebody else's meal or be like, you know, I. I got your coffee. Don't worry about it. Why is that so shocking to us? Because they didn't have to. Why didn't they have to? Because they had free will. They have a choice. They don't have to love. And so I just think love wouldn't be nearly as impactful if we didn't first have the Choice to love. If it was the only choice, okay, how hard was that? You know what I mean? But it's the fact that, like, we have two choices. We either have the choice to love, we have the choice to hate, or to be selfish, arrogant, conceited, manipulative. Like, there are choices that we can make every day. And so anyway, how did I get on that tangent? I don't know. But, yeah, I just think that that could be a real. A real doubt that people could have. Going into Christianity is expecting everything to be good, but it's just not that the. Like, what I was saying is the truth of the matter is that we live in a broken world because of all of that and because of us. And so that won't happen until we're in heaven. You know, that. That perfect walk, that perfect life where there's no pain or suffering, where the Lord will wipe every tear from our eyes, that won't happen until we're in heaven. And that's okay. That's why we need him every day in our life here on Earth. Because it is hard. And so it is great once you give your life to Jesus. Because I can't imagine walking through a broken world because the world is broken no matter. No matter what, whether you know Jesus or not. So you're going to endure the suffering or not. And so for me, and you know, my own story was that I was sick of walking through such suffering and emptiness, and I felt pretty meaningless as well without having Jesus, like, or I. There was just something in me that needed to be filled. And so it's not that my life has gotten any easier, but I do believe that the weight and the heaviness and the burdens and the shame and the sin that I was carrying on top of the hardship of life made it pretty unbearable. Like, I. I was becoming an empty, empty, empty shell of myself, trying to carry the weight of my life, the weight of the things that happened to me or the things that I had done. And so having a savior, having Jesus by my side, has not made my life easier, but he has helped carry the burdens and the heaviness that comes with the reality of life and the reality of being a human and making mistakes and saving me from myself and my selfishness. And so I. I will literally never turn back, ever, because I don't. I don't ever want to walk through life without him. And the truth of the matter is, like, the world has a lot of options of things that could help us with the burdens of our life. But the truth of the matter is that all of those options are so temporary, and they also can only go so far. I believe that anyone who is coping with the burdens of life and trying to go through life outside of Jesus, like, I do believe that there is help in those things. But it's not merely the freedom that you can receive with Jesus because He is the only one that can carry those burdens of our life. And I can say that because I've lived it and I've experienced it, and I am actually very grateful that the Lord let me see those things and taste those things. As painful as it was in a lot of the seasons that I was.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

In.

[Ali Yost]

They sucked and they're really painful to even think about sometimes. But I'm grateful that he let me walk through it so that I can sit here and say, yeah, I'm not. I'm not just like a hypocrite who's sitting here being like, yeah, I've had a perfect life my whole time. And, you know, I've. I've faithfully walked with Jesus perfectly my whole life. It's just not true. Like, I didn't even actually truly know who he was until two and a half years ago, you know, and so I'm grateful that I had those seasons of darkness, as painful as it was and as empty as it felt and as foggy and gray as it seemed, because I now can see the contrast of what it's like to walk with the Lord and what it's like to be completely alone in this world, you know?

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[Ali Yost]

And so, yeah, I think, I think that doubt is real, you know, but I also think that if, if you go into this with expectations of just like instant, yeah, like that, instant gratification. I think that that is something that's so dangerous in our generation and it doesn't have to just apply to our faith journeys. I mean, that can apply to all things. I just think, you know, with Doordash and Amazon and guys, I just ordered a couch and I'm so grateful and excited about it. It's going to be delivered in my house in 48 hours. What is that? Like, literally, what is that? Actually, thank you, God. But also at the same time, I'm like, it used to take like months to get a couch, and so it's great. But it's also, I, I feel like it, it's a bit dangerous because it's created this instant gratification, this instant like serotonin boost in us, dopamine, whatever that is. Like just that instant gratification of getting things so quickly. That when it comes to our spiritual growth or walking with Jesus, I don't know, I just feel like maybe that could bleed into our faith where it's like, okay, well, why aren't things changing? God, why haven't you taken this thing out of my life? Why haven't you brought breakthrough in this way? Why do I still feel depressed? Why do I still get these waves of anxiousness? God, why does this still happen? Like, I thought that you said that you were the way truth and life and that my life would get better once I started walking with you. Why are these things not happening? And I just think that that, that could be another reason that people would doubt. Because, you know, if they're, if they're walking with the Lord for a few months and even that's why it's so, it's so important for us to be so honest about all of our walks. Because I just don't believe that anyone could actually like, testify and say, yeah, I started walking with Jesus and like, everything was amazing and life was so good. And then that's it. And then, and then the end, you know, and unfortunately, I do think that some people paint it out to be that way because I think there are good intentions in it. I think that the reason why people would paint out the journey of, of walking with Jesus that way is to get people to give him a chance because he is so good and he's faithful. And it's like, if we could just get people to give him a chance, it's. It's game over. And I get that. But it does feel a little car salesy. It does feel a little bit like when you're shopping for something online and it's being pictured to be this incredible place. Like, okay, just because I was just recently like shopping for a house, for a home to move into. The thing that's so frustrating to me is like seeing the photos on the website and everything is in like point 5 everything is made to look really big and spacious and beautiful and the lighting is gorge, whatever. And then I go to freaking tour the place and it looks nothing like that. It looks nothing like that because they, you know, they did something to the photos. They used a little bit of like a fish lens, a wider lens to make it look really big and spacious. And then they AI generated like a really blue sky out the windows and trees to make it look like the lighting is beautiful and bright. And then you walk in and you're like, okay, this is a tiny little shack. What is going on here? And it's that kind of stuff that frustrates me because it's like, I understand. It just feels manipulative. It just feels manipulative. And the thing is, is like, I believe I want to give the body the benefit of the doubt and say that I don't believe that. It's like people are intentionally trying to manipulate. Well, some people might be, but I'd like to give people the benefit of the doubt and say it's just because they know the truth of Jesus. And they're like, hey, if we can just get people through the door and we can get people to come, then that's all we need. And I get that, but I still feel like that's a bit manipulative and it's not being honest. And so painting Jesus out to be this, like, life is going to be perfect. All the burdens of your life are just going to instantly go away. Is giving the 05 photos of this house and then they show up and they're like, okay, no, like, yeah, this is, this is great, but this is not what I thought it was going to be. And the thing is, I'm not comparing Jesus to a dinky little shack. Okay, I want to preface that he is the best thing ever. He is the best thing ever. And so when we say that about him, it's the truth. But what I'm trying to communicate, and I hope I'm doing a good job at it right now, God forgive me, I'm trying my best, but I just think the hype of like, over, over promising that it's going to be perfect is really dangerous. Because if people come into this with the wrong expectations and we're not telling them the full truth, how about that is like, that's not dishonest. Completely dishonest. But also, if it's not a full truth, it's probably a lie. Like, we're just lying. So telling the full truth of what it's truly like to walk with Jesus and letting people know the real expectations going into it. The good and also the hard, I think is the best way for people to hang on. You know, I think people can start doubting their faith and their journey with Jesus. Or, like, I mean, guys, the damage can go so far. It can even go as far as people being like, okay, well, I see all these other people where apparently it was so great for them. Everything in their lives were fixed. They immediately got financial freedom. They immediately were delivered from their addiction. They were immediately. And the thing is, is, like, some of those stories can happen, but if we are not telling the full truth of our testimony and we're not being honest about. Also, like, yeah, I walked through the fire, too, though. But Jesus, thank God, because I would have been walking through that fire alone. So. But Jesus, you know, he gave me hope. He gave me courage. He gave me strength, like, supernatural strength. I actually probably would have never been able to get through that season with my sanity, with still having my sanity, if it wasn't for Jesus. I needed his strength through that season. Glory to God. He's the only one who could have gotten me through that. But, yeah, if we're not being honest about those parts, people could think that they're broken. They could think that God doesn't love them enough. They could. They could be like, okay, it worked so great for everybody else, but not me. So apparently God doesn't love me. He doesn't hear me. He doesn't see me. This Christianity thing, I don't know is even real. I don't even know is Jesus even real? I thought. I thought he was real, but maybe I was just caught up in this weird swirl, and it wasn't even Jesus from the beginning. Like, it can be so damaging. And so, okay, I don't know where that rant came from, but, yeah, I think that that's a real thing, too. Is like, people could doubt Christianity if they go into it with the wrong expectations, because we set them up for what we thought would be success, but it was actually failure. They're looking back on their journey. The last four months, they've been under the most spiritual warfare of their life because the devil wants to hang on to their soul for dear life. And I believe even in the beginning of our. The beginnings of our journeys are like, some of the hardest times, because that's when you're like, God is, like, ripping all these scales from your eyes, and you're seeing all the ways that you've been living in your life, and you're like, oh, my gosh, God, like, I have been so wrong. Like, the ways that I've been living is actually, I've been fooled, I've been deceived. And you're, like, unlearning the things that maybe you've been walking in for potentially your entire life. There's sanctification that comes with that of God just, like, stripping just, like, all the things that need to. He's refining and he's polishing you. And, like, honestly, I think the beginning part of our journeys with Jesus is, like, the most challenging. I think those are the times that we need the most community and. And we really need to help our brothers and sisters who are. Who are just coming into their faith for that reason, because it is. It's hard. And. And there's a lot of things that you start to see for what it is, and you're like, whoa. And also, the enemy is never, ever, ever happy about salvation. Like, if somebody has been. Has. Has just given their life to Jesus, I. I don't see why the enemy wouldn't try hard while they're still a baby. They're like a little baby, newborn infant, baby Christian to come in and try to snatch them back before they're strong enough to discern, before they're strong enough to know any better, you know? And so also, yeah, I just think it's important, too, that if there are people around you that, you know, are new to their faith, just support them, love them, pray for them. Like, show up for them, be there for them, help them, refine them. Like, we have to be there to support each other. Otherwise people will start to doubt their faith because it's hard to do by yourself, you know, I'm so grateful that, you know, the first year of my journey with the Lord, I was technically alone. Like, it was just me and Jesus in the middle of my apartment in West Hollywood. But at the same time, like, God was introducing me to people, even virtually. There were some friends that I was making online believers who, you know, did what I did of just being on the Internet, on social media. And so even that I was like, I felt so seen and loved in is just being able to, like, have people walking with me, even virtually. But, yeah.

[Co-host or Guest]

So anyway, hopefully that was helpful.

[Ali Yost]

Okay. Kelsey says, which I think we've talked about this on the podcast a couple times. I'm not actually sure, but we'll do a little touch on this. Kelsey says, the Sabbath. How do we actually follow the Sabbath? So this is my POV and my understanding of just What I've learned from the Lord about Sabbath and how we're supposed to honor the Sabbath, this is just what I do. I don't know if most people, whatever you can agree with it or not, that's okay. That's okay. But this is just take it or leave it is what I'm saying. Take it or leave it. But I believe that the Sabbath should. Is honored in the best way that you feel rested. I believe that God created the Sabbath to just rest. God just wants us to rest. I believe that. So whatever it is that that truly brings you rest. And also I think that that's the reason I'm like, take this or leave it is because I think that the Sabbath can really vary per person. I think that the Sabbath can be personalized per person, whatever that looks like for you, of what brings you the most life and what makes you feel the most recharged, what brings you the most rest? Because I believe that the point of Sabbath is for God. He's just encouraging his children to take a break. Just take a break. And if you're not really sure what that looks like, I think the best thing you could do is just sit down with the Lord and pray and be like, okay, God, let's make a list of things I should do on my Sabbath and things shouldn't do on my Sabbath and let him be really honest with you. And sometimes for some of us, it's like, I won't be on my phone all day. Like, if you know that that is not something that actually brings you true rest. True rest. Like, we can distract ourselves with our phones and we can, like, scroll on them and it can be entertaining. But do we feel restful? Like, do we feel rested after we've been scrolling on our phone for hours? I can't say I feel super rested. I'll say I feel entertained. And I'm like, okay, that was kind of fun. But I wouldn't say I'm like, I feel like this breath of fresh air has washed over my body and I'm, like, refreshed after scrolling on my phone. I actually kind of feel, like, dumb. I feel, like, stupid. I just feel like my brain is, like, filled with anxiousness and, like, clutter, actually. Because the other thing too with scrolling is you never really know what you're going to be fed. And so as much as it probably would be nice to think that we would be fed all good things, you're, like, also being fed all this information that maybe you just didn't need for that day. Maybe you scrolled past something in the news and you're like, wow, okay, that was really heavy. Or you see an image or there's a lustful post that comes up and now you're being. It's like, I don't know, maybe we just don't scroll on our Sabbath. That could be a rule that you set for yourself. But like, yeah, just being honest with yourself and with God and sit down and be like, okay, Lord, what are some things that are really fun to me that I enjoy? And it leaves me restful. If that's going on a hike, great. If that's being a freaking couch potato and watching your favorite show, great. If that's reading your favorite book and taking a bubble bath, if that's go getting a massage. If that's hanging out with your dog, if that's hanging out with your friends, if that's socializing, if that's hermitting, like, whatever. That looks like it's one day out of your week, but whatever brings you rest, I think that that is the best way to follow Sabbath, to honor Sabbath is to rest and be in the presence of God. I actually probably should have led with that of all things, though, personally, a Sabbath for me is like, I need to be with Jesus all day. Like, I need to be with Jesus all day. I need to be with Jesus every day. And I. And I do my best to make time for him every single day. But my Sabbath, I know for a fact, is going to be the day that I am like, God, fill me up, fill my cup. So it is like overflowing for the week so I can just overflow your goodness and your love and your grace to the people around me in my, in my work ethic, in the way that I show up this week, it's a. It's a really important time to let the Lord pour into you so that you can be overflowing. And it's a good. It's a good reset too, of just being in his presence. So however way that looks like for you, that could be worshiping, that could be putting worship music on your tv, that could be reading the Word. We should probably read the Word on our Sabbath. For sure, you should read the Bible. But yeah, resting and being in his presence. And the cool thing is, is it says in Scripture, Jesus says, come to me, all who are burdened and heavy, and come to me and I will give you rest. It is in his presence. It is in the presence of Jesus where we actually receive rest. And so I actually think also with partnering with all the things that you.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Love to do that gives you rest.

[Ali Yost]

I think just even being in his presence will give you the rest that you need. Let's also make sure that we're not focusing too much on all the tasks and the things that bring us rest. And. And make sure that we're also just still looking at Jesus, because He is the one that can give us the ultimate rest. But, yeah, long story short, be in his presence and do the things that bring you rest. Amen. I think that's the best way to honor Sabbath. Okay, I wanted to do one more question with you guys, but my phone won't load. The poll won't load but a word. So instead I was like, okay, God, give me one more question. Lord, I just pray that you directly give me one. Then since we can't look up any. I'm actually just hearing the same word playing over and over in my mind right now. And the word is simplify. Yeah, simplify. And I'm like, simplify what?

[Co-host or Guest]

God.

[Ali Yost]

And I really believe that he wants to encourage us to, like, if any of us have been struggling with maybe making our relationship with God too complex, maybe there's been too much pressure. There's too much, like, religion. I just feel the Lord encouraging us to simplify it. And it's funny, I actually was at. I went to Bethel Church. I don't know if you guys are familiar. I'd never been before. I listened to a lot of their music. I listened to a lot of Bethel worship. And so I went for a conference that they were doing called Open Heavens. And I guess they've been doing it forever. To be honest, I'm, like, very new to, like, Bethel Church. I guess, like, me going there, I was learning so much about the church in itself. I don't have a lot of experience with their ministry. Just honestly, just their, like, worship music I've mostly been listening to, but nothing else other than that. Anyway, I go. I will say, it was so incredible. That's, like, for a whole nother day, honestly. But it was amazing. And it was funny, though, because getting in these environments, they are okay, Bethel Church, if you're familiar. If you're not. If you're familiar, then this makes sense. But the culture there is very offensive in the sense of, like, they are very charismatic, Very charismatic. And I think a lot of people can walk into those environments and feel really offended or feel really uncomfortable. And I think that that's totally normal and okay. Especially when you're not familiar with those environments. I do believe it's the Holy Spirit was moving. Like, regardless of whether I was like, okay, I've never seen that before or not, who am I to judge? Like, I'm not the judge. God is. And so it was really. It was actually really cool to experience. And I. I didn't feel unsafe. It just. I think sometimes when you see things that. Or like, experience things that you're not as familiar with, our first instinct is to be kind of scared and freaked out. I think that that's obviously why even the angels in the Bible were like, hey, don't be afraid. Because when we are not familiar with something and it's. And it's bigger than us, it can feel really, really freaky. And so what was the point of me sharing that? The point of me sharing that was that I felt like. And I even received a couple words from people while I was there. One of the words being to not take myself so seriously and to not take God so seriously. And I'd like to say that I'm pretty good at that most times. I'm pretty good at not taking God too, too, too seriously in the sense of. I'm not saying, like, a lack of respect or fear for him, because I always have that. But I just think sometimes I put a lot of pressure on myself and a lot of pressure on our relationship where I'm. I'm not just being with him and I'm not treating it like a relationship that should be simple. Like, God is so vastly complex, actually, but also so simple at the same time, where all he truly wants is our friendship. He wants our loyalty, and he wants our love. And then he also wants to. To give that in return. And so I don't know if this is speaking to anybody, but I. I use that testimony of, like, even using myself as an example that I is. It's tempting even for me sometimes to, like, put way too much, make it too complex with God where it's actually, it's. It's simple with Him. And so I just feel him encouraging us to simplify our relationships with Him. And if there's a question of how, I think the best person to ask that question would be the Lord, I think, sitting down with him and being like, okay, God, how can I simplify my relationship with you? In what ways have I made it complicated? In what ways have I made it so that I am just striving and trying to show you that I'm worthy? In what ways have I been, like, walking around like a circus monkey, being like, you know, no, I'm this and I'm that, and I'm good, and I'm, you know, like, how can I show up and just be a daughter today or just be a son? And I think even that statement in itself could make a lot of us emotional. And I think the reason why we feel emotional, even imagining that, of just being an heir, like just being a daughter, just being a son of his, is because that's what we were made for. We were made to rest in his presence, and we were made to have a simple yet beautiful love with our dad, you know? So, anyway, that is our word of the week. I say we all adopt. That is like, to just simplify. Simple. It's simple.

[Co-host or Guest]

Being in relationship with God, it's simple.

[Ali Yost]

You guys, I love you so much. Thank you for joining us for another episode today. Hey, can we do something cool today before we go? Can we do something cool? Can we show somebody how cool Jesus is? Can we walk more like him, talk more like him, be more like Jesus today? I'm proud of y'.

[Co-host or Guest]

All.

[Ali Yost]

I'm grateful for you.

[Co-host or Guest]

I'm so grateful for you.

[Ali Yost]

I, um.

[Co-host or Guest]

And yeah, I hope that this episode spoke to you.

[Ali Yost]

And I will see you guys next week.

[Co-host or Guest]

Bye.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

Are some of y' all still listening? Okay, if you're still here, that means.

[Ali Yost]

You'Re a real one, which is why.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

I'm about to share this with you. If you've already caught up on all the episodes so far and you don't.

[Ali Yost]

Want to wait until next Friday for.

[Podcast Promo Voice]

A new one, I have really good news for you. Subscribe to our Patreon to get early access to the episodes every week, early access to merch launches or any other exciting news, and receive personalized encouraging messages or Bible verses from us. Subscribe to Our [e-mail] C backslash CWCOI I do also want to mention that there is a way to give to the podcast. So if you ever feel led to donate, it blesses me so much, and it helps allow the podcast to keep running. You can donate to our paypal at www.paypal.me backslash cwcoi we appreciate y' all.

[Ali Yost]

And we love you so, so much.

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