← The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast
The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast
1KHO 589: Strong Roots in a Shifting World | Raechel Myers, She Reads Truth
00:58:35
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A
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So start with Activia. Enjoying Activia twice a day for two weeks as part of a balanced diet.
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A
And healthy lifestyle can help reduce the frequency of minor digestive discomfort. Welcome to the 1000 Hours Outside podcast. My name is Jenny Urch. I'm the founder of 1000 Hours Outside, and I'm so excited about this. Rachel Myers from she reads Truth is Here. And there is this incredible new book out. It's called the Bible Is for your. It's gorgeous. And then we're talking about that today. Welcome, Rachel.
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B
Thank you so much for having me. I'm pumped to be here, Jenny.
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A
I'm so thrilled you're here. You know, we talk about getting outside, and there is this part of getting outside that some families are interested in. Not all, but there's this part of getting outside that nature is this hands on display of God's principles. Yeah. And there are a lot of families that are interested in that. And so here and there, you know, we. We have episodes that are more geared toward faith. And so I'm really honored that you're here to have this conversation today. You came out with this book earlier this month, and so it's out whenever this podcast goes live, you're gonna be able to get it. But. But it's called the Bible is for you A Devotional Journey through Every Book of the Bible. And it is just absolutely gorgeous. And you're talking about getting outside. Even the COVID is this Garden of Eden, this painting, I think you said, from the 17th century.
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B
Yeah.
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A
You know, that's like, I don't think it's talked about in the church too much. I don't think it's talked about in general, like, in parenting circles, that getting outdoors can be a really important tool for teaching your kids about faith and having that be a part of your family. And a book like this, you know, I always think about things in terms of doing it as a family. And I know, like, a mom could get this book and it would really. Anybody you talk about, anybody, wherever they're. They're on their spiritual journey, this can help them with their faith. But also, like, if you really want to get the nuts and bolts down to your kids and start to kind of walk them through. What are these different chapters of the Bible about? How does the story weave together? It's something that you could do as a family. So can you just talk about? I mean, the COVID of the book is not a computer screen. It's God's creation.
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B
That's right. Yeah. I mean, you make me think, Ginny, of Romans 1, where, like, Paul says, like, therefore, we are without excuse because all of nature testifies to the glory of God. Right. Like, if we are outside, we are seeing evidence of his general revelation of himself. Right. And so, like, I. I love that you pointed that out. And truly, like, everything we did about designing this book was so intentional. Not just like, ooh, make it pret. But, like, what does it mean? Right. And so you opened it up and kind of took the jacket off, and you're right. Like, the front cover, it's this painting by Jan Bruegel. At first I saw it, I thought it was Jan Bruegel, and I was like, oh, a lady painted it. It was Jan, and he's Belgian, and he actually painted it on copper, which is very cool. But, yeah, the painting is called the Garden of Eden. And the thing that I love, like, speaking about, like, being intentional, if you open the book, like, all the way, and, like, look at front and back together, it's the whole painting, but, like, intentionally, we have sort of this reminder from the beginning, before we even open the book, that the story of God begins and ends in a garden. Like, in the Garden of Eden, ends in the Garden City. And, you know, despite. And because of everything that happens in between. And so, like, even, like, before we open the book, we're already kind of preaching the gospel, like, beginning in a garden, ending in a garden. And then even, like, you. You know, like, the spine and we expose the spines. You can see all the little signatures kind of stitched together. It's another, like, really intentional design moment where we're going, like, hey, the Bible is actually a bunch of books woven together. And so just, like, even, like, that little reminder.
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A
Oh, it is so incredible, too, that the way the binding works that you can open it up like that, just like. Like that all the way.
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B
Like, she lays flat. Like, not every book that you buy will just, like, lay flat without having to, like, break the spine. But this girl, she lays.
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A
Yeah, it's beautiful. And if you look at it, you're like, this is filled with what God created. Horses and antelopes and apple trees and birds and pigs and the Hillsides and meadows. You said already preaching the gospel just by holding it.
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B
Yeah.
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A
And that's how I feel nature is. It's already preaching the gospel when you go out there and there's all these incredible parallels, like how the earth can be healed, you know, how you can rebuild the soil, how there's forgiveness in the land, like all of those things, they allow you to talk about spiritual principles with your children so that they can absolutely understand them in deep ways. So I would love to hear your story. So you wrote this book with Amanda Bible Williams. In the whole book, I was like, is that her middle name? Like, it's not. It's her maiden name.
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B
It's her maiden name, which I, I understand how like wildly like, you've got to be kidding me.
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A
That is.
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B
But it, it is true. She was Amanda Bible until she married David Williams. And so she's now Amanda. And so it's not her mid name.
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A
Right.
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B
But when we first kind of signed our first like book contract, we had like a meeting with our publisher and they were like, you're Amanda Williams. You and a million other people. Like, how will your author name be unique? And she was like, well, my maiden name is Bible. And they were like, well, ain't that funny?
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A
Well, that's it. That's it. I read, I learned from. When I finished the book, I looked at this. There's like this beautiful like half jacket that goes around it.
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B
Yeah.
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A
And it said that was her maiden name. But the whole time I was like, did her parents give her the middle name Bible? I was like, I've never heard of that.
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B
But prophetic, right? Yeah.
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A
But even the fact that that's her maiden name. So talk to us about your story. Where did you meet Amanda? And you talk in this book about how you grew up coming to know Jesus as children. But even still you have days you are out where you feel unqualified, uninspired. I think that's a big one. Especially if you're in a season of mothering. You feel uninspired, you're overwhelmed or simply unable to open your Bibles. So talk to us about how you and Amanda met and ended up being on this incredible journey together.
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B
Yeah, I mean it's a where to begin sort of a story. I back background about me I'm. I've been married for 22 years to my husband Ryan. We have two kids. They are 15 and 18. The oldest about it, he's going to turn 19 a couple weeks. He's in college now but, but that's our Family. And then Amanda has her family whose ages of kids almost match exactly. And honestly, Ginny, 13 years ago, I was a blogger. I was just like, it was like, 2012, and it was just a popular time for, like, dot blogspot, right? And. And so I, at the time, was blogging initially in. In 2008, we lost a daughter. She was stillborn. And. And so that was sort of the impetus or the beginning of really just, like, writing to process grief. So I started a blog then just to kind of process that. And that went to, you know, homeschooling. My little ones that went to garage sailing and all those hall. Like, just like, I. My degree is in housing and environmental design. So I ended up, you know, doing some work with brother sewing machines or Land of Nod, like, all these just little design things. And it kind of brought me to, like, a place where I was blogging. And every day, whether it was garage sales or wallpaper, I couldn't help but talk about Jesus. It's just like, that he is my savior. And, like, he is, like, he is my life. And so that's kind of what brought me to 2012. And at that same time, I was also, like, I would say absolutely in love with Jesus. And I would say that the way that I was living wasn't reflecting what I believed about Scripture. And by that, I mean I believe and believed that Scripture is my authority. I believe that it is my way to know God. I believe it is the, like, if creation is the general revelation of God to the world, that scripture is the special revelation. Like, it is this canon of scripture that we have, and that is how we know Him. And yet I wasn't really acting like it. Like, I wasn't. I knew that the Bible was important, but it didn't seem urgent. Like, I wasn't prioritizing Bible reading in the way that if I was living the way that I said I believed.
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A
It, I would have been.
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B
And so that was really 2012. And it was like when Twitter was kind of new and hashtags were kind of new, and, like, all of these things were kind of coming together. And so I was actually. Kids were down for a NAP. They were 2 and 5 at the time, and we were. I was just on Twitter and saw two girls that I didn't know having a conversation about. Like, one girl had just gotten back from a compassion trip, and she was like, I just wish I had, like, a better Bible reading habit. And I somehow felt like I was invited to chime in. And I was like, me too. Like, let's do it. Like, let's just, like, let's do it. Let's go to the primary source. And I think that that's the other thing about that time in, I don't know, like, female American Christendom History in 2012, I don't know that women were going directly to the primary source. I think that we were going to a lot of Bible studies. I think we were certainly sitting in the pew. I think we were watching videos, doing really good Bible studies, but we were outsourcing our Bible reading to somebody else. And I felt convicted by that. And I thought, but what if I just go and read my Bible and just really go straight to the Word and let Sundays be a punctuation point from a whole week of a conversation? And so we did. And it was funny because we were like, oh, like, you know, three other girls had this conversation. We're like, nice to meet you, I'm Rachel. And all of a sudden, because the four of us were bloggers, we, you know, the conversation was very public, and so a lot of people were like, hey, we want to do this too. Like, we're in, we're in, we're in. And we were like, okay, here's the thing. Like, we can meet each other by email, but let's find a way for women to join this conversation and continue. So one of the girls was just like, well, there's a thing called a hashtag. And so, like, if we do that, then people kind of follow it. And la, la, la. She was like, I don't know, just like, say hashtag. She reads truth. So the next day, it was like, this time, like, we're reading the Bible together. This time we're doing it together. Hashtag, she reads truth. And Jenny, it trended like, it just was like this. Like, God was moving. Like, it wasn't like four best friends in a coffee shop going, like, here's how we're going to change the world for Jesus. Or, like, here's like, our business plan, or here's our next 15 years. It was just like, we want to read the Bible and we really mean it. If anybody wants to read with us, let's. Let's go. And it was just like, yes, we do. And it just, like, went from like 4 to 4,000 to 40,000 to 400,000. Like, it just exploded. And we weren't ready for it, as you can imagine.
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A
What do you think it reflects that, like, that rapid growth? What does it reflect?
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B
I think it's hunger. I think it's like, Hunger for truth. I think that whether it be 2012 or 2025, I mean, you've probably seen the news that, like, I mean, Bible sales, Bible, like, seeking, especially in, like, the younger generations, are just, like, skyrocketing right now. And it's because we want to know what's true, and we want to go to the primary source to find it. Like, I think that that was true for women then, and I don't think it's any less true for women right now.
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A
And same for our children. They're entering into this world. That's confusing. The world is confusing. I am interviewing later today, my favorite farmer. His name is Joel, and he has this book out called Beyond Labels that he wrote with his PhD in nutrition. So they write this book together. It's called Beyond Labels. And it's like, you know, he's like, well, in this decade, eggs are bad for you. And in the next decade, eggs are good for you. And in the next decade, you eggs are fine, but you have to make sure you don't eat the yolk. And then, you know, so you're like, this is. I mean, that's one really small example. You're like, this is a really confusing time. And so hungering for truth. And that's been my experience with God's word, is that it is true. It holds true even when it's counterintuitive. And that's, for me personally, that's probably my favorite part of the Bible, because when something is counterintuitive, like giving you or receive, that's a really simple one. That doesn't make any sense.
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B
Yeah.
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At all.
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Yeah.
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A
That makes zero logical sense. You know, how do you receive? You hold on to what you have. You take from others. Yeah. Giving you a receive doesn't make sense. But anytime you try these spiritual principles, they work. So you're like, well, that must be God, or how else would that be so and so there's these truths, these foundational truths that you can stand upon. And the premise of this book, then is really interesting. As silly as it was, I was like, why does it have 66 chapters? The beginning. And then I was like, oh, casino. It's like, well, a devotional has 50 days, 100 days, 365 days. I was like, 66 days. What are Rachel Random.
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B
We just ran out of steam. We just ran out of steam.
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A
We were going for 75, but we just stopped at 66. Talk to us about. I actually think it's a pretty robust project to say, I'm gonna go through all the books of the Bible. Yeah, it is a one of a kind. So when did that idea pop up?
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B
I mean, probably about last summer. We were talking with our publisher, and they were kind of offering us this opportunity to do a devotional book. Amanda and I, we run a ministry called she Reads Truth. And as a ministry, our mission is women in the Word of God every day. And so we publish these reading guides that cover all 365 days of the year so that women on subscription will just get the book. All the scriptures in there, it's all curated, and we do that. 12 books a year we publish. And it's a very busy schedule. And so when our publisher was like, hey, would you do a devotional book? And we were like, well, we've never done that before. If we were to do a devotional book, here's what it would have to be true. It would need to serve our existing community, and it would need to be something that really, like, one of the big questions we get from our existing community is, hey, I have a friend who's not a believer, or I have a friend who's really curious about scripture or Christianity, but she's really intimidated to just, like, jump into the whole Bible. What would. What would be a resource that I can give her? And often we're like, oh, the John reading guide. You know, Matthew reading guide. But we were just like, what could we make that would just be really helpful? And so this is what we came up with. It really was just a. Like, we believe that the Bible is for you. We see, you know, even sitting in the pew on Sundays, like, there is a shrinking canon of scripture that is being preached in the United States. You are, you know, you're hearing from John, you're hearing from the Psalms, you're getting some Genesis. Like, there are some, like, greatest hits scriptures that you're probably gonna get to hear from your pastor every year. And yet there is about a third of the Bible that is scarcely being taught, preached, read from the pulpit. And so we thought we got to go to the whole thing because the whole thing is inspired. The whole thing is meant for us to read. And so we endeavored to do that. And so we. And also, Scripture is ancient. Like, this is an old, old book. And I mean, we talk. We've talked for our whole lives about, like, oh, but it's relevant. It's relevant. And so one of the things that we wanted to do was just go, okay, let's sit down. One book of the Bible at a time. Let's read A little bit of it, kind of some, like, maybe champion passages that would help you understand, like, what's happening in Amos, what's happening in Joel, what's happening in John. Next, let's actually go somewhere else in Scripture. Let's next have Scripture, interpret Scripture. Let's stay in that primary text. And then third, let's go first, like, let's write an essay, a devotional that says, like, hey, these ancient words fully impacted my life today. I want to tell you about that. And I bet it's true for you, too. It's a really, like, that was our rhythm 66 times to just kind of go. And the thing about Scripture is that, like, Scripture can be really sad. Scripture can be really funny, honestly, Scripture can be joyful. It can be so many different things. And so we also matched that in a sense, like these essays, like, you're going to get some that are like, hilarious. Like, I talk about learning to say, to surf in Portugal with my kids. But we also, you know, have some really, like, hard essays to read, you know, about, you know, a friend who lost a son. Like, we explore all of life because that's what scripture does.
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A
It is a one of a kind book. 66 books, but one story. The Bible is ancient, but also living. If you're new to the Word or you've spent your studying, or your heart feels hopeful or heavy or a little bit of both, this is for you. It's remarkable. I was really impressed to go through all 66 books and to show how it weaves together and to show how there's something for you in Nahum. I was like, I don't even know if I've ever actually said Nahum, you know, like, like you do like, Bible drills when you're a kid and you got to find the. The books, you know, And I'm like, have I ever actually said the word Obadiah?
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B
Yes. Did you know that Obadiah has no chapters? It's just one like it. There's no. Yeah.
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A
So there's so much to learn. And I also like talking to families and there's a lot of kids that listen in. This would be a great one to do as a family and to really get a sense of what is each book of the Bible about.
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C
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A
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A
I wanted to hit some of the. You know, I had this thought, Rachel. Okay. I had this. This husband and wife on one time. They were talking. This is going to be such a weird segue.
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B
I love it.
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A
But they were talking about campgrounds, okay. So they have this incredible set of camping books. Like, where. It's called Where Should We Camp Next?
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B
Love it.
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A
So they've got Where Should We Camp Next? National parks and Where Should We Camp Next? And so they. They had gone through every state, all 50 states, and, like, where should we camp there? And what are the cool places? So in the podcast episode, we went through every state. We just went alphabetically, and we, like, went back and forth and back and forth. So when I was getting ready for this, I was like, would it be possible in 60 minutes for me and Rachel? So I was like, no, that's not going to be possible. But all 66 books are covered in the Bible is for you. I wanted to talk about a couple of things that really stuck out to me, and one of them was about Esther.
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B
Oh, yeah.
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A
So Esther has this incredible story where she saves her people. It is a dark and desperate situation. So the way that it's laid out is that you have this one verse, which was incredible to me. Like, I wanna talk about that later. But, like, you were able to pick one verse, you know, this, like, key verse for Esther.
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B
Oh, we used this homeschooling our kids all the time. Like, we, like, memorized a key verse for every book of the Bible so that you could really recite one verse, 66 verses and be able to kind of say what's happening in Scripture.
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A
That is a brilliant idea, Rachel. And that's what the book has. It opens. Each chapter of the Bible opens with that.
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B
And if you have littler kids, every verse has a smaller highlighted section. Like the. The Esther 414 is kind of long, but the highlighted section is shorter. So if they have a littler kid, all you have to know is perhaps you have come to your royal position for such a time as this instead of the longer verse. So we've accommodated.
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A
It's a really nice yellow color, by the way.
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B
Thank you.
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A
I really liked.
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B
I was like, we really. I want you. I want you to know how much that means because the amount of meetings we had about what color of yellow.
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A
It'S a gorgeous yellow.
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B
Color.
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A
I was like, wow, they picked the perfect one. Yes. You have this verse. Verse at the beginning. Then you have all these scriptures from Esther and you. There's a little subheading. So you know what's going on. Haman's plan to kill the Jews. Mordecai appeals to Esther. Esther intervenes for the Jews. You're walking through the victories of the Jews, Joseph's. And then. Okay. And then you relate it to these other scriptures, which is incredible.
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B
Yeah.
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A
And I really like that it's so scripture heavy.
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B
Yeah.
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A
I think a lot of devotionals often have, like, one verse and then a story, which is fine. Like, you know, anything, one way to do it. But this is really scripture heavy. Very scripture heavy, actually, from the top. And then comes the devotional. So I love the format of it, but I didn't know this. So Esther's in a dark and desperate situation. So once again, the Bible is for you. Are you in a dark and desperate situation? Have you ever been in a dark and desperate situation? We all have been. And you say this. God's name is never mentioned in the Book of Esther, but his hand is evident as he works through ordinary men and women to bring about this dramatic rescue of his people. I did not know that.
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B
Yeah, not once. Not once. And that wild.
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A
Yeah, it's wild. So just a reminder that, like, God can be at work. Like, he's at work out in front, and he's at work in the. In the. In the background, too.
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B
Whether we are naming him, whether we are crediting him, whether we are going to Him. He is at work right now in our lives, whether we call him our Lord or not.
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A
Yeah. And so then in this one, this is Amanda's story. So you both are sharing different things in different spots. And actually you had other people who joined in as well. It shows in the back, like, this person helped with this chapter or that type of thing. But she was talking about how her. Her son was in the ICU and he's unconscious and just talking about. Though. Even. Even though this is such a dark and desperate time, God is always at work.
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B
Yeah. I remember that day she sent. He was on ecmo. She sent a photo of him just with every machine, and then some just connected to him, and it looked really, really, really bleak. And I just. She sent me the photo, and I said, amanda, this is a photo of God at work. And that's all. Like, that was all we could hope for. Like. And that was true no matter the outcome. And that's the important thing. Like, that would have been true no matter the outcome. We still have her son with us today, praise the Lord. But that would have been true no matter the outcome.
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A
Yeah. Yeah. So that's a little example of what you would find in Esther. So a lot of scripture, personal story, but also how. How is the Bible for you right now?
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B
You know, I mentioned, I mentioned earlier that, you know, when we decided to do this book, we wanted it to serve our existing community and is exactly what you will see in our existing community. We are scripture forward to a place where you're just like, oh, we're going to read more right now. Okay, cool. Like it. I mean, every day right now, our community is in, I think, Nehemiah. Yes. October 6th, we start reading the book of John together. But like, you're going to read and read and read from John and then you're going to read from other places in Scripture. And so our community, for anybody that is a she, we call them like the she's from she reads truth. But this would look very familiar to them because you're right. Like, there are a lot of devotionals and there's not like a hierarchy. There are a lot of devotionals where you might well get a reference and then an essay, or you might get a verse and then an essay, but rarely will you get. Let's start with God's Word and let's be sure there's more of that than ours. And so that was just like our. That's our conviction, that's our approach. And we also feel really strongly that the order be that. That that be the case for the order. Start here, respond to it with our words.
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A
Yeah. Lots of scripture. Okay, so you brought up John. Let's talk about John. Because I thought this was interesting. You talk about this family. Their kids were Matthew, Mark, Luke and Roy.
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B
Yes.
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A
This is so great. Okay. We've got really good friends.
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B
Roy was a family name.
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A
Matthew, Mark, Luke and Roy. Okay. We have these really good friends where the husband, his name is John. Okay. So theirs goes John and it's a junior or second, you know, so, like, it makes sense that you name the first son John.
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B
Sure.
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A
But there goes John, Matthew, Mark, Luke. Okay, so it's out of order. And then they had another boy and they named him Eric. And I've always been like, huh, that's interesting. You know, like, there's so many other biblical names.
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B
Biblical names, Timothy, Paul, Peter, like, so many good choices.
- [28:18]
A
Yeah. Or maybe they're like, well, we've got to do something totally different. Like Roy. So it doesn't feel like they're the outcast. But anyways, I thought that was funny. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Roy. I didn't know that John's Gospel is roughly 90% new content.
- [28:31]
B
Yeah, isn't that wild?
- [28:32]
A
Yeah, tell us about it.
- [28:34]
B
I mean, the thing is, like, so there's four gospels. The first three, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are synoptic gospels. So they're like boots on the ground, and they're like, here's what happened. And like, Mark, for example, is like. He uses, like, the word immediately and like. And suddenly, like, he's just very, like, this is happening. And he's doing his, like, mark and sandwiches, where he's like, Jesus was here and then he stopped and did a thing. Then he came back. Like, he's just. It's very narrative. Whereas the Gospel of John, written by John, the. The disciple John, was actually written. So. So all of these events took place in, like, A.D. 30 to 33. But the gospel of John was actually written right around, like, 70 to 100 A.D. so half a century later, John wrote this. And it's not called a synoptic gospel. It's called a reflective gospel. And so I just, like, I was actually literally thinking about this today. Like, the fact that John got to sit back, he ruminated on everything that he had seen, that he had experienced, and really, like, got five decades of space between what happened and what he wanted to say about it. And it's interesting, the details that he brings that the other gospel writers don't like. You think about the detail of Peter's denial where, you know, he's standing at this. John describes it as he's standing at a charcoal fire and he denies knowing Jesus three times. And then that's in John 18. And then in John 21, Jesus has resurrected from the dead and this third appearance to his disciples. And. And he's standing on the shore while the disciples are in a boat. And he's standing on the shore with a charcoal fire that he's built. And Peter jumps out of the boat and swims to him. And like, imagine, like, the scent memory of the last time I was standing at a charcoal fire. I said, I do not know him. And then Jesus is there, and there's this charcoal fire, and Jesus three times restores Peter, kind of taking him to his place of deepest shame, only to go like, hey, hey, feed my sheep. Follow me. Like, use this and let's go. There's also another detail I. I'll nerd out over John every day of the week. Um, there's another detail in John where Mary goes to the tomb. And these are things that are unique to John's gospel where, like, He's. It's been 50 years, and he's like, here's what I want you to know. When Mary went to the tomb and she saw the. The slab, the stone slab was vacant. Jesus was not there. It actually describes that she saw an angel at the head and at the foot. And, you know, it would take being a pretty good student of scripture to recognize what was happening here. But what John was pointing out to us, like, if you think about, where else do we see a stone slab with an angel at the head and the foot? And it's the mercy seat. It's the. The top of the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, in Exodus, it's the place in the holy of holies, of the tabernacle where no man can go, where no sacrifice is worthy, where no blood can be shed. Only in Exodus 25 says, I will meet you at the mercy seat. And then in John 25, the resurrected Jesus, like, that is where his body is laid at the mercy seat. And it's this, like, full circle Old Testament, New Testament moment of John just saying, hey, where God promised that here in Exodus, it happened here in John, like, this is. This is it. This is God meeting us at the mercy seat. His blood, his innocent blood shed for us is the sacrifice and the priest once and for all. Like, just beautiful.
- [32:14]
A
And that's the whole point of the book. It's like, it really weaves together all 66 books. 66 books, but one story. Interesting that it's called a Reflective. Reflective. That's what you said. Reflective Gospel.
- [32:27]
B
Yeah.
- [32:27]
A
I've never heard that versus narrative. And like, the verse that you have in John, which is the very first verse of John, John 1:1, is very reflective, isn't it? In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- [32:41]
B
Like, that's so deep with God in the beginning. And you're like, wait, what? And it goes on like, everything that has been made was like. Like was made through him. And he. Like. It's this, like, echo of Genesis 1. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Well, wait a minute. He was with God in the beginning. So it's this, like, trinitarian theology. It's so reflective because, like, Matthew opens with, like, well, here's a genealogy. You may as well know. Yeah. And like, just practically speaking, here's what.
- [33:17]
A
You need to know.
- [33:18]
B
And in, like, Luke, he gives, like, this, like, really beautiful. Like, that's where we get, like, our favorite Christmas story, right? Like, the birth narrative. And it came to pass in those days that Caesar Augustus and all the world should be taxed. But John's like, hey, Jesus is God. He was with God in the beginning, and everything that has been made was made through him.
- [33:40]
A
I'm going to read it. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God. And the Word was God. He was God in the beginning. All things were created through him. And apart from him, not one thing was created that has not been that. I'm not a good reader.
- [33:52]
B
Rachel, you got this.
- [33:53]
A
All things were. All things were created through him. And apart from him, not one thing was created that has been created. I mean, it is really reflective and deep, right? It was life, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness has. Did not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light, the true light that gives light in everyone.
- [34:21]
B
To everyone coming, oh, my goodness, into the world. Amen.
- [34:26]
A
Yeah. He was in the world, and the world was created through him, and yet the world did not recognize him. Back to creation. You know, you look at all these things and you. And it's really interesting. We've been watching documentaries on Sundays with our kids, and we just watched this documentary called the Octopus Teacher. And it is just like this remarkable documentary about this man who basically befriends this octopus. And he's going down into the water. It's like, on the. It's like, down near South Africa. And he has this incredible camera, and he's capturing these underwater worlds in this octopus that has all of these different suckers and how, like, you know, one time one of the arms gets bit off, and it, like, grows up back, and then the octopus starts to recognize this man, and then they, like, hug at the end. They're, like, touching each other, and you're like, this is the most remarkable, this creature. This one creature. And it's swimming amongst all of these fish and all these different types of sharks and all. All of these, like. It's like an underwater forest. And it's so interesting that we could look at something like that. Or even a squirrel. Even a squirrel that can run up a tree with its bushy tail and not recognize God.
- [35:36]
B
Yeah.
- [35:37]
A
In that.
- [35:37]
B
Romans 1. Yeah.
- [35:39]
A
Yeah. And that's what he says here, too. He says he came to his own, his own did not receive him. He. No, I said the wrong thing. He was in the world and the world was created through him. And yet the world did not recognize him. And I think that's a big thing. That's what's happening. We're not recognizing God's hand in his creation and all these amazing things that he has created. So John, roughly 90% new content. I will read John differently now.
- [36:04]
B
Yeah.
- [36:04]
A
Knowing that it's a reflective gospel.
- [36:06]
B
Yeah.
- [36:07]
A
There's a lot to learn here.
- [36:11]
B
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- [37:29]
B
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- [37:32]
A
New Teen, the new fragrance by Miu Miu, defined by you. So right now you talked about that you're working through Nehemiah and John is coming. We're heading into October. But one of the special things you also do is an adventure reading plan. Can you talk about that?
- [37:48]
B
That's right. Yeah. I mean, it's funny, right at the very bottom of the John, one passage that you had open verse 14, the word became flesh and dwelt among us. Like, oh, he's coming. Like he, like Luke gives the huge birth narrative and John just says, the word became flesh and dwelt among us. Yeah, we. So yeah, as a community, we're reading Nehemiah right now. We're going to read John for a few weeks, then we're going to read Revelation. Because. Because actually, you know, John wrote the Gospel of John, but he also wrote Revelation. And so to kind of get young John, old John is pretty sweet. And then Our favorite reading plan of the year is Advent. And as a community this year, Advent begins on November 30th. But it's our, like, favorite book of the year because it's got recipes in it and crafts and cross stitching and all sorts of things. What it's.
- [38:37]
A
So I've been missing out. I love cross stitching.
- [38:42]
B
I mean, I. I actually this year it has, like, a needlepoint. Like, at the lake this summer, I was, like, doing the needlework for all of the little things for the Advent photo shoot for the book. Like, it is. It's my favorite book because I just feel like I like to touch all of life because Scripture touches all of life. Like, let's make our favorite soup. Let's make our favorite cinnamon rolls. Let's do things slow. Let's make it. And let's also, like, meet gals where, who just need something easy, you know, and then also know, let's read the Bible together. Like, let's not let Christmas Day sneak up on us. Let's not let the Christmas season get away from us without walking slowly toward the manger. And that's like, what does that mean? It just means, like, let's start in the Old Testament and let's find out. Why did we. Why did he need to come in the first place? What was the waiting? Like, can we feel that ache with the people of Israel? Can we feel that ache with. With the prophets? So that when we turn the page from Malachi to Matthew, we're like, oh, we needed this. Like, we needed Christmas. And we have this benefit of, you know, we are people between two Advents, right? Like, the first Advent happened. Jesus, he, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And the second Advent is still coming. Jesus promises like, behold, I'm coming soon. Like, I'll come again. I will make all things, things new, and I'll dwell with my people. So we're between two Advents, which means that every year when we study the Advent scriptures, when we remember the story of the Old Testament and the birth of Jesus, like the incarnation of God, we see all of the promises that he kept, all the things that he said would happen that came true. And it just gives us this, this faith, this resolve, this hope that all the things that are yet to come, that he's promising, that are he has prophesied. Well, he's kept his promises. He's going to keep this one, too. He is coming back. Like, our hope is a future hope and not just a past hope.
- [40:50]
A
Oh, that's so good. I love that all of those parts of it, they reflect God. God of the creator. God. So you're creating cinnamon rolls, or you're doing needlepoint. And we serve a God who is a creator who creates.
- [41:03]
B
And we even do a paper chain. We're like, you want to do something simple? Like, here's how a paper chain can look amazing.
- [41:10]
A
When you say it's a book, is it downloadable?
- [41:13]
B
It is. So you can. It's a physical book. My copy that I have here is spiral down because it's what I use for podcasts. But usually it's much more pretty than this. But, yeah, you can download the digital book and just, like, have it. I think you can even print it. But, yeah, like, you can keep it on your iPad and that kind of thing. Or, you know, if you want to have the recipes and the photos and all the things, like, open for you a little, like, olive wreath that you can make.
- [41:40]
A
Oh, I saw. Like, a hymn. I saw.
- [41:41]
B
Yeah. Oh, there's him. Absolutely.
- [41:43]
A
Cinnamon rolls.
- [41:44]
B
There's sheet music.
- [41:45]
A
Everyone should be doing this.
- [41:47]
B
Yeah. This is actually our 14th advent, and it is my. I said it's my favorite book of the year, but every one of our books is pretty much like this. But Advent, it's the most festive. It's the most, like, just, how do we blow it out? We meet every January and we're like, what's Advent going to be like this year? It's the one we're most excited about.
- [42:05]
A
Oh, it's like when you plan your garden, you know, like.
- [42:07]
B
Yeah. Oh, yeah.
- [42:08]
A
January, you're looking ahead. What's to come? Even you talked about slowing down. I feel like that reflects God, too. Like, you know, slow.
- [42:15]
B
That's good.
- [42:16]
A
All right, I want to hit another verse that. That is one that I think is so important for moms. It's actually one of my favorites. And talking about how.
- [42:24]
B
I have to pause one second. My dog's barking.
- [42:26]
A
Yep.
- [42:28]
B
We'Re good. She just. We had a guy working outside this morning, and I think she remembered it. She was like, I gotta get back up.
- [42:35]
A
It's all good.
- [42:36]
B
I'm so sorry.
- [42:37]
A
No, you're so fine. You're so fun. I love it. What's your dog's name, Honey?
- [42:42]
B
Oh, honey.
- [42:43]
A
That's a good dog's name. I love that. Okay. All right. So here's what I was gonna say. So this is one of my favorite. This is one of my favorite verses as a mom. I don't think it was my favorite verse until I became a mom. But it's in second Corinthians where this is talking about weakness.
- [42:59]
B
Is it four? It's the chapter four. It is.
- [43:02]
A
Well, it's just your opening verse here for second.
- [43:06]
B
Sorry, I just got, like, overly enthusiastic. Don't mind me.
- [43:09]
A
Wait, what's in chapter four? What am I missing?
- [43:12]
B
I'll tell you.
- [43:12]
A
Oh, I know. Then you've got chapter four here. The light of the Gospel.
- [43:15]
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [43:16]
A
But the opening verse for 2 Corinthians is, he said to me, my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness. Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses so that Christ's power may reside in me once again. It's one of those things that is counterintuitive. And especially as American culture, it's like, we want to not be weak. Everything about us wants to be opposite of weak, and we wanna be strong and out leading the pack.
- [43:43]
B
Fake it till you make it. Hide your weakness. Right?
- [43:45]
A
Yeah. And, yeah, I mean, I would say, like, the whole reason that we have a podcast or the whole reason that, like, 1,000 hours outside, similar to she reads, Truth has gone global. Yeah. And it really was birthed out of failure. It was birthed out of me really struggling in early motherhood. It was birthed out of weakness and not knowing what to do with my children and how to make it through the day. And so often I think we wish. We wish. Right, Rachel? Like, that we were stronger, you know, that we. That we weren't so weak. And yet this weak state is actually an ideal one. So can you talk about that? Giving encouragement to the parents listening in?
- [44:21]
B
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, you mentioned second Corinthians, and I was like, oh, chapter four. Like, I just got excited. But it's. Here's the thing. This book that we created and selected, like, ah, how do we pick, like, a couple of chapters or verses for each thing? Like, it's meant to be a doorway. It's never meant to be, like, the final destination. Like, yeah, if this excites you, go read the whole Bible. Right? Go read this whole book. But, like, my encouragement would be actually, you know, you mentioned my grace is sufficient from you from chapter 12 of 2 Corinthians. I was reading chapter 4 yesterday, and in verse 16, Paul says, Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. Right. And it goes on to, like, talk about, like, our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal weight of glory. But then he Says, so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. Since what is seen is temporary, but what is. Is unseen is eternal. Like, I feel like this speaks to every mom's heart, right? Like, what matters? Like, what is eternal? What am I investing in? Do I care about what is seen more than I care about what is unseen? And that's. That's tough because, like, the world prizes what is seen, right? Yeah, but the discipleship of our kids, and that's eternal, right? I. I also just think about, like, the opener of that passage, you know, we do not lose heart, though. Our outer selves are wasting away, our inner selves are being renewed day by day. Like, I. The amount of food in my fridge that is expired. The. Like, my eyes are getting weaker and my prescription's getting stronger, right? Like, I. Like, the lawn needs mowed. The, you know, the gutters need cleaned out. Like, are, like, everything. My. My dog, who I Love, who is 100% orange, now has little white hairs around her muzzle. There's nothing I can do about it. Like, it just makes me sad because it reminds me that I won't always have her. Our outer selves are wasting away, but our inner selves, our eternal selves are being renewed day by day. And that can only happen. It's not like, and just, like, automatically it's being renewed. No, no. Like. Like, it's because we're going to the source of renewal. It's because, like, we can't just auto renew. We have to. Like, you think about your phone battery, you know, and for whatever it's worth, like, everybody's got a phone. They hate it. Here it is. And. But we charge it about every day, right? Because it needs to be charged every day. I need to be charged every day. And, like, with what am I charging myself, right? Like, where am I going? Like, what is my source of life? Like, what is my source of. Of power? I certainly hope it is Christ and him crucified.
- [47:22]
A
It's so good, that whole concept of not giving up. I mean, because it comes up again at the beginning of chapter four. Therefore, since we have this ministry because we were shown mercy, we do not give up. Don't give up. Don't give up. And that weakness is actually the preferred state because it's a showcase for God's hand. Look what God has done. Look what God has done. We use a hashtag. Shereads truth. I'm like, hashtags actually aren't even a thing anymore, you know, but at the time, it's such a big deal. Look what God has done, you know, and it just showcases. It's something that you could never have done on your own. That's how mine is. It's like, well, gosh, I'm like, I was just a really bad mom. And then going outside helped, you know? And you're like, well, look what God has done. So it's really powerful. So this chapter, the story comes from someone named Lore.
- [48:12]
B
Lori.
- [48:14]
A
Okay, all right.
- [48:15]
B
Her name is L O R E.
- [48:19]
A
And you've got your Rachel with an E. That's interesting.
- [48:21]
B
We listen, we like our weird names.
- [48:23]
A
Oh, sweet Lori. And everybody in her whole life has just called her Lore. Okay, so this one is Lori's. So in this Second Corinthians one. And I just. I found it amusing, even though it's actually kind of sad. So she was talking about how. Okay. And so talking about our weaknesses. And this is really common. And when you're a mom especially, and you're having to care for your kids even though you're completely sick, she says it was just a common cold, then an effect, then an infection, and then another infection from the antibiotics the doctors had given me to fight the first infection. Then after being in bed for a week, my lower back started to hurt. To add insult to injury, I cracked one of my molars on a seed in my bread and ended up having to get a root canal for four weeks. It was one thing or another. So first of all, she cracked her molar on a seed.
- [49:14]
B
Bless her heart.
- [49:15]
A
Oh, Lori. Oh, my goodness. But just even that, like, those are the times in life when we are. And that's a pretty innocuous one because you do also talk about the ICU and times in the hospital and having a stillborn. So this is one of those. It's momentary, it's four weeks. These are a lot of things. It's really heavy. But no matter whether it's really heavy or more transient, it's just a four week thing and you get through it. It's such an amazing reminder that God's power is there in weakness. And she says, I felt like a walking demonstration of weakness, but God is there. God is there in it.
- [49:48]
B
Yeah.
- [49:49]
A
And the Bible is for you because it has things for you in your dark and desperate times.
- [49:53]
B
And it preaches that upside down gospel that you're like, how could this make sense? Like, how is strength perfected in weakness? Like, how is that? Like, how are we boasting in our weakness? Like, what is why? And Scripture unfolds that for Us.
- [50:07]
A
Yeah.
- [50:08]
B
I.
- [50:09]
A
When I was taking my notes, Rachel, you know, I was like, I love.
- [50:12]
B
By the way, you have taken fantastic notes. You get an A plus plus for preparedness. Jenny.
- [50:18]
A
Thank you. Okay, well, I was like, I'm. I'm gonna go through every chapter and.
- [50:21]
B
Then I love it.
- [50:22]
A
And then as I got, I was like, wow. I was like, there's a lot of first and seconds.
- [50:29]
B
I was like, first, second, third John. And.
- [50:34]
A
Because, you know, you're kind of nearing the end, it's like when you're traveling home from a trip, it's like that last 30 minutes, you're like, oh, I just wish I was there. So you get to first Peter, second Peter, and then it's first, second, third John. But I wanted to bring this up, even though I'm always nervous to bring it up in third John. Yeah, we were kicked out of church. So here I sit as a Christ follower that was revoked. Revoked from church. And what happened was we sent. This is something that, like, we have not healed from. And in fact, our oldest or one, I'm not going to say which kid, but one of our kids the other day was, was, I mean, just crying and crying about lost friendships. And what happened was we sent in letters because we were concerned about the youth pastor. Our whole family sent in letters and they kicked us out. We didn't have one meeting. It's awful. And they said that we were gossiping and making false accusations. And they, they. We were kicked out of church. And then six months later, he was caught as a pedophile.
- [51:37]
B
So.
- [51:38]
A
And we knew, like, something was wrong. We obviously didn't have access to his email and he was trying to be intimate with a teen boy.
- [51:45]
B
Oh.
- [51:46]
A
So. And that was a long list. That was actually a long list. I mean, they, you know, the police report only can, you know, deleted a bunch of stuff, but it was like he had this long history of being intimate with male teens, college age, trading for vape pens. This is like not a man that's supposed to be a youth pastor. And so we were kicked out of church. And it has been one of our more traumatic things because ostracization, in some ways you're like, gosh, just get over it. But like, ostracization, losing your community, trying to walk your kids through that, the injustice of. Was rather disgusting. Yeah. And at the same time, God provides in our weakness. He is strong. And so it was so interesting to me, Rachel, that as I was literally getting to the end of this and I was like, I probably shouldn't have taken notes on every chapter.
- [52:40]
B
I'm so impressed.
- [52:41]
A
It got to third John and it said, I've never kicked anyone out of church, but I have played the part. And I. And I don't know who wrote this one.
- [52:51]
B
Amanda.
- [52:53]
A
Amanda did. But I have played the part of diatrophies in my own ways. I've tried to twist the gospel into something it isn't. Tried shaping truth to fit my preferences or prioritize my comfort. I've misrepresented crisis. I'm emotional about it. It's. It is. We have not. Like I said, we have not healed from it.
- [53:13]
B
Yeah.
- [53:13]
A
And I bring it up actually quite a bit on this podcast because I don't know, it like, weaves into a lot of conversations. I've misrepresented Christ by looking at others and even myself with eyes that are not truthful or loving. But praise God. I cannot rewrite the gospel. It does not shift with my insecurities or shrink according to my understanding. No. It is always and forever the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. There is. I needed to read this. Isn't it wild, Rachel? It was like at the very end.
- [53:45]
B
You had to get all the way through.
- [53:47]
A
I was annoyed. I was like, why did I do this? First, second, third John. Here's the end. There is no. And I just think this is important. And I. And maybe I'm like, this is part of my story. Because this podcast goes out to a lot of people and it goes out to people who, who maybe have been in a situation like me that in our family that have been really hurt by things that have happened in the church. And thank God none of our kids, none of our kids were abused or so thank God for that. But I know a lot of people have just these really hard situations and it says this. There is no self appointed gatekeeper who can keep you from the love of God in Christ Jesus. There is no lie so loud that it can diminish the truth of the gospel.
- [54:32]
B
That's right.
- [54:32]
A
And so, like, as a church revoke ye. My husband and I were like, we should make hats revoked from church. There is no gatekeeper.
- [54:42]
B
And the thing is, the broken, like, church is perfect until you add people to it. And then it is fully and wholly imperfect and people are going to mess it up. And not just a little, not in a cute way, like in a. In a harmful.
- [54:56]
A
In a very harmful way. In a way that possibly could.
- [54:59]
B
Could jeopardize your children's foundational understanding of the gospel. Yeah. And their relationship with church going forward and the relationship with the people of God going forward. And I love, I mean, I love that you brought this up. Like the demand, it was like there is nothing that man can do to actually change what is true about the gospel. There is no words that can be twisted. No, like there's no amount of self appointed. You're out, I'm in. You know, gatekeeping that can keep, that can change the thing, the true things from being true. And like, I feel like that's like that's what we have to preach to ourselves. That's what we have to preach to our kids. It's just like, hey, these people were not walking in the truth. That doesn't change that the truth is true. That doesn't change that the gospel is exactly what it was before this happened. And it's going to be exactly what it is after the next hard thing happens. Because hard things will continue to happen. Like our relationship with the people of God. Look at the Old Testament. The Israelites were a wreck. They were constantly being exiled because they, they weren't doing it right. Like, even the priests, the people of God were the ones to choose and elect to crucify Jesus. Like it wasn't like the outside world. It wasn't the gentiles that crucified Jesus. It was the, it was the inner circle, the chief, like the high priest. Like, and we just have to remember that we know, like we go to the primary source. We don't outsource our Bible reading to even our youth pastor. Even like a really good youth pastor who is walking in the light. Yeah, let's learn from them and let's go to the primary source and know for ourselves what it says.
- [56:46]
A
It's really good, Rachel. It's so good. Because the verse is in our weakness. He is strong. And so that for me and God has. God is always gracious and God always provides more than you can ask or imagine in the walking through of it. Obviously this gives us a lot of opportunities to talk to our kids about scripture and to talk about, you know, we sent in these letters of concern. We sent them in the mail in envelopes. They called it gossip. Is that what God calls gossip? You know, so that whole point of actually going back to the primary source is such a good one. And what an amazing tool that you've given for. I think it's an amazing tool for families. I know that a lot of your things probably are dealing with women. They're getting these different Bible reading books throughout the year. I hope I said that right?
- [57:29]
B
Yeah.
- [57:29]
A
And you know, they're going to do the Advent one, but this one in particular, I think the Bible is for you is such a great one for laying a foundation for your family. I agree. It's not too much and it's not too little. It's very Goldilocks. Right. It's not too heady that your six year old is, but it's not too light either that you're not going to walk away. Changed all 66 books there.
- [57:50]
B
It's meaty but manageable. Like, it's just we keep hearing from husbands and wives that are studying this together, like families that are studying this together. And that's. We have, we have. I mean, we have. She reads Truth. We also do have. He reads Truth. And so there are like the Advent book that we have for girls, we have a different format one that is for guys and they, they can read along too. But you're right, I mean, mostly it's, it's, it's the women and the women of the home who are bringing those resources in, discipling themselves, each other, their children. It's beautiful.
- [58:25]
A
Yeah, It's a wonderful resource for families for sure. The book is called the Bible is for you. And you can make sure you check out the Advent guide and I'll make sure, I'll put the links in the show notes so that people can find them. We actually also have the website talking about she reads Truth, he reads Truth. So we've got 1,000 hours outside, but we also bought 1,000 hours inside.
- [58:42]
B
Oh, so smart.
- [58:43]
A
We own the URL and I don't know if we'll ever use it.
- [58:46]
B
I know what we're doing with it.
- [58:47]
A
Yeah, well, the thought would be like, I would love for it to be like this congregate of, of games and needlepoint and cross stitch and crafts and like, what. How do you make homemade play doh? Like, what are all the cool things that you can do inside that are hands on that are not screens? So I love that you said brilliant. Oh, please do that. He eats tooth and Huey's truth. We've got 1,000 hours outside and inside. Rachel, this has just been such an honor to get a chance to talk with you and I am so impressed. I'm so impressed with the book and how it drives you to scripture and how it has this beautiful start from beginning to end of sharing the story of the gospel and enveloped in this stunning painting of God's creation. It just fits so well with this audience. We always end our show with the same Question. What's a favorite memory from your childhood that was outside?
- [59:34]
B
Oh, I love that question. When I was four years old, my. My dad been built a sandbox for us. And it was like a little 4x4. It felt enormous. It felt like a swimming pool. But I was so little and there I have. I just remember summer evenings in Michigan, sitting outside and just shoveling that sand like that. Like super sensory. We even have a photo and my mom says this was like kind of the first moment that she realized that I was left handed because I was only shoveling with my left hand. But yeah, absolutely. Summer, Michigan, nights in the sandbox.
- [60:07]
A
We're from Michigan.
- [60:09]
B
Oh, really?
- [60:10]
A
Do we even talk about that?
- [60:12]
B
No.
- [60:12]
A
Summer in Michigan is just wonderful.
- [60:14]
B
Oh, there's nothing like it.
- [60:16]
A
It's so true. Rachel, what an honor and huge congrats on the book. It is. It is tremendous and so helpful and obviously the ripple effect will go for generations.
- [60:27]
B
Amen. May it be so. Thank you for having me. Limu Emu.
- [60:35]
A
And Doug, here we have the Limu Emu in its natural habitat, helping people customize their car insurance and save hundreds with Liberty Mutual. Fascinating. It's accompanied by his natural ally, Doug. Uh, Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us. Cut the camera. They see us. Only pay for what you need@libertymutual.com Liberty Liberty, Liberty. Liberty Savings. Very unwritten by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company affiliates. Excludes Massachusetts.