100 Episodes and We Did NOT Expect This

Summary

The Jinger & Jeremy Podcast

Episode: 100 Episodes and We Did NOT Expect This

Hosts: Jinger Vuolo, Jeremy Vuolo

Date: June 17, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this milestone 100th episode, Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo reflect on the journey of their podcast, sharing memorable stories, discussing standout guests, and offering behind-the-scenes insights about the show’s evolution. The episode captures their gratitude for their listeners and provides a candid look into the real-life challenges and surprises of podcasting as a couple and family. With warmth and humor, they highlight the unpredictable resonance of certain episodes, the therapy-like nature of recording together, and the profound impact of stories shared—both theirs and their guests'.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Milestone Reflections & Behind-the-Scenes Beginnings

• Podcast Origin Stories: Jeremy and Jinger reminisce about launching the show amid technical mishaps, moving homes, and adapting to recording with kids around.
  • "We started it the first week we were in this house...We recorded about four episodes over and over and over, and...the equipment didn't work." (02:05 – 02:33, Jeremy)
• Home Studio Evolution: They turned a storage room into a studio to escape the challenges of noisy family life, sharing funny thrift-store art acquisitions and their struggles with home decor.
  • "It was basically our garage, and then with it set up as a studio." (03:07 – 03:44, Jinger)

2. Notable Guests, Surprising Episodes, and Listener Insights

Lecrae (Rapper & Podcast Guest)

• Jinger shares how the rapper Lecrae, though unfamiliar from her strict upbringing, left a strong impression as a humble, kind guest despite the chaos of a rainy, humid LA day.
  • "I really enjoyed that conversation with [Lecrae]...They were so humble and kind." (05:01 – 05:47, Jinger)
  • Notable Moment: Lecrae later interviewed Jinger for his podcast about her book People Pleaser (06:03 – 06:08).

Athing Mu (Olympic Gold Medalist)

• Jeremy recalls having their very first guest—athlete Athing Mu—and marvels at the unpredictability of which episodes resonate with listeners.
  • "Athing Mu. Oh. She was our first guest Olympian. One of the fastest women in the world, a strong believer." (14:10 – 14:17, Jeremy)

Viral Surprises: Costi Hinn

• The episode with Costi Hinn (nephew of famed televangelist Benny Hinn), about his departure from the prosperity gospel movement, proved unexpectedly powerful and went viral.
  • "I was shocked by how deeply our episode with Kosti Hinn resonated with everyone...it exploded." (14:40 – 15:35, Jeremy & Jinger)

Parenting & Resilience: Shawn Johnson & Andrew East

• Jinger names the episode with Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson and NFL player Andrew East among her favorites for their relatable, empowering advice on parenting and perseverance.
  • "It was very deep and rich but also real and relatable..." (16:19 – 17:02, Jinger)

Real-Life Hardships: Dean McMahon & the Palisades Fire

• The Vuolos recount the emotional conversation with friend Dean McMahon, who lost his family home in a devastating LA fire. The story highlighted the fleetingness of possessions and deepened their own trust in God.
  • "Just to watch him and his family walk through that devastation was mind blowing." (17:38 – 18:36, Jeremy)

Music, Loss, and Healing: Stephen McWhirter

• Jeremy tells a behind-the-scenes story about getting worship artist Stephen McWhirter (Come, Jesus, Come) to sing at the university chapel and then record the podcast, recalling the effect of live music and strong voices on their family and audience.
  • "He belts out, 'Come Jesus, Come' on the little keyboard. And everybody was...like, whoa." (25:43 – 29:12, Jeremy)

Family Support Through Trauma: Jeremy’s Mom & SWAN

• The episode featuring Jeremy’s mom sharing her story—finding music through trauma, becoming a professional violinist, and founding SWAN (a nonprofit for kids with incarcerated parents)—proved to have far-reaching impact.
  • "My mom is running toward those kids..." (37:29 – 39:20, Jeremy)
  • "Your response to that episode has been overwhelming...you will receive a handwritten note from my mom thanking you..." (40:46 – 41:08, Jeremy)

Miscarriage & Misunderstood Grief: Jinger, Joy, & Jessa

• One of the most meaningful episodes featured Jinger and her sisters discussing their experiences with miscarriage—helping to break the silence and normalize grief around the loss.
  • “For talking about miscarriage in that way...talking about what to say, what not to say, is also helpful...” (41:08 – 43:12, Jinger)

3. Podcasting as Marriage Therapy

• The Vuolos express how the podcast acts as a form of therapy and intentional connection in their marriage.
  • "This has almost been like therapy. It's crazy, you and I sitting here every week..." (29:18 – 29:38, Jeremy)
  • "The cool thing about the POD is that when we're talking about just life in general...it's so much fun." (29:38 – 30:41, Jinger)

4. Podcasting: The Realities & Challenges

• They pull back the curtain on the realities of podcast production (cost, scheduling, editing), often recording at odd hours with minimal preparation and doing much of the work themselves.
  • “There's a lot that goes into it and people are starting to realize that now. And that can become draining...But what we get out of it is so worth it.” (31:42 – 32:09, Jeremy)
  • Humor: Jinger laments her “sleep deprived” appearance in clips, blaming the late hours and explaining their DIY approach.
    • "Half the time I look back, I'll see a reel...And I'm like, oh, my goodness, I look so scared, sleep deprived." (34:41 – 35:02, Jinger)

5. Superlative Awards: Fun Segment

(43:30 – 46:18)

• Most competitive guest: Olympic gold medalists Sydney, Shawn, and Athing Mu
• Funniest guest: Andrew East (and his kinship with Jeremy)
• Guest they’d most want to babysit their kids: Jeremy’s mom
• Road trip companion: Jinger’s sister Joy (& Austin)
• Zombie apocalypse partner: Allie Beth Stuckey (for her food supplies!)
• Business partner: Carly Jean Brannon (CJLA), also Rachel Cruz
• Thanksgiving guest: Jackson (already attended once!)

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• "Our 100th episode. Yeah. Is three minutes long." (04:22, Jeremy – joking about losing power mid-recording)
• "Therapy without the therapist." (29:31, Jinger – podcasting as couple's therapy)
• "This isn't a high production. This is real life. We're sitting down, having conversations." (35:02, Jeremy—on their homegrown approach)
• "People are more complicated than they appear in public, in public perception. To sit down with someone...and have a conversation with them and you realize, oh, this is just a person." (47:22, Jeremy—on learning from podcast guests)

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Episode Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:30] – [04:26]: Reflections on reaching 100 episodes, technical mishaps, and home studio stories
• [04:49] – [09:53]: Favorite guests, podcasting surprises, Lecrae episode
• [12:19] – [14:17]: First guest Athing Mu and the unpredictability of episode popularity
• [14:40] – [15:35]: Viral unexpected success: Costi Hinn episode
• [16:19] – [17:15]: Parenting insights: Shawn Johnson & Andrew East
• [17:23] – [19:51]: Resilience amidst disaster: Dean McMahon fire story
• [23:55] – [29:12]: Stephen McWhirter (live music, chapel anecdote, podcast)
• [35:53] – [41:08]: Jeremy’s mother’s story, SWAN foundation; impact of sharing trauma and music
• [41:08] – [43:12]: Miscarriage stories and breaking down misunderstood grief
• [43:30] – [46:18]: Awards segment—fun superlatives for guests
• [46:25] – [47:59]: Final reflections—lessons learned after 100 episodes

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Reflections and Takeaways

Jeremy:

“People are more complicated than they appear in public, in public perception…to have a conversation with them and you realize, oh, this is just a person.” (47:22)

Jinger:

“How resilient people are through the trials of life...hearing their resilience because of Christ in them and ultimately giving them the strength to get through…” (46:25)

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Tone & Atmosphere

The conversation is intimate, warm, humorous, and transparent. Jinger and Jeremy openly embrace the messiness and unpredictability of both their personal and podcasting lives, inviting listeners into their home and hearts with authenticity and gratitude.

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For New Listeners

This celebratory, deeply personal episode is a great entry point into the world of the Jinger & Jeremy Podcast—full of funny asides, faith-filled encouragement, honest storytelling, and lessons on the unpredictability and power of sharing real life and real stories.

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Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Today is a big one because it is our 100th episode.

[A]

Yay. This is so exciting. I cannot believe that we made it to 100.

[B]

What's the first guest that comes to your mind when we think about the ones we've had on this podcast? I was shocked by how deeply our episode with Costi Hinn resonated with everyone.

[A]

It's insane. Yeah, it blew up.

[B]

And I'm gonna come at you guys as our listeners for a second. We've handled some really difficult subjects on the podcast. There have been times where we've talked. I mean, this has almost been like therapy every week. Oh, Jim. It wouldn't be our hundredth episode if we didn't need tissues. What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Ginger and Jeremy podcast, and today is a big one because it is our 100th episode.

[A]

Yay. This is so exciting. I cannot believe that we made it to 100.

[B]

We've been doing this for a hundred almost straight weeks.

[A]

That's crazy.

[B]

We took one week off for New Year's.

[A]

Oh, yeah. Big relaxation week. New Year's, being on a trip.

[B]

So does it feel like yesterday that we started this thing, or does it feel like 100 episodes ago?

[A]

It does not feel like 100 episodes. I can't believe that we made it to that. It's wild.

[B]

You know, it's crazy is we started it the first week we were in this house.

[A]

We did. That's crazy. I mean, I remember. Well, not the first week we were in this house, right?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because this room was a storage room for a while, right?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But we started it downstairs.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, wait, that's right. I was like, how did we start it the first week?

[B]

That's crazy, because we had started the podcast three or four weeks before we moved in our old house. And remember, we recorded about four episodes over and over and over, and we had somebody who was coming in to help us record, and they came into our old house. Like, the first episodes of this podcast should have been in our old house, but every single time, the equipment didn't work. Remember that?

[A]

That's actually crazy. I do remember the mishaps that we had. Yeah, we had a lot of mishaps, actually, on this podcast.

[B]

Well, we did the first episode and we recorded them in batches. So we recorded two at a time. And then it didn't get recorded. And so we had to scrap it. And so they came back, set everything up. We recorded two or three more again. And then we got word it didn't work, so we had them come back again. That happened again. And by that time, we were already, like, in escrow at the house. And so we moved in and did our first episode on the couch in the front room.

[A]

That's insane. That's actually pretty crazy. I forgot that we did that at the old house. And I think timelines, for me, I'm always the worst with remembering when things happened and how long it's been. But, like, now that you say that, I'm like, oh, yeah, of course we recorded in the front room of our house. And that was difficult. Cause we were, you know, just. The setup and breakdown of it was really hard with kids, it's difficult to keep it quiet. And so you had the idea of using this storage room as our studio. And so we'll have to give a shot before and after with all of our stuff in here. It was basically our garage, and then with it set up as a studio.

[B]

Speaking of keeping things quiet, today is an interesting episode for it's our hundredth. But it's also. We are on a tight timeline because we are replacing our electrical panel and in fact, like, the whole street's electrical, and they are about to shut the power off in the next, like, hour. We're hoping this doesn't just happen during the podcast.

[A]

I literally hear somebody out here hammering behind us.

[B]

So that's the thing. You're going to have all the sights and sounds. Well, the sounds of electricians outside working, and hopefully the power doesn't just get shut off.

[A]

Otherwise, this has been a good episode. Thanks for watching.

[B]

Our 100th episode. Yeah. Is three minutes long.

[A]

Goodness.

[B]

I thought we would take a stroll down memory lane and talk about. We've had some really, really great guests. We've covered some interesting topics over the last 100 episodes. And I'm curious, Ging, when. When I bring up, you know, I wouldn't say favorite guest, but most notable guest or one that sticks in your mind. What's the first guest that comes to your mind when we think about the ones we've had on this podcast?

[A]

Lecrae.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Lecrae.

[B]

What?

[A]

I mean, I don't know if that's Crazy. Cause I did not grow up listening to any of his music really, which is wild surprise.

[B]

Duggars didn't listen to rap.

[A]

It's crazy. But I actually, when he came, prior to him coming, I had listened to some of his songs because of you. And so you introduced me, of course, years ago when we were first married. I listened to some of his stuff. And anyhow, I think that when we met him, I was very impressed by him. And then also his friend who traveled with him. They were so humble and kind. They are super humble and kind and gracious. And it was a terribly rainy day, muddy on our property. And they ran in out of the rain, like drenched, I'm sure. And it was. I feel like it was sticky in here too. I feel like the AC wasn't on, it wasn't working.

[B]

It rarely gets humid in la, but we. It was a torrential downpour.

[A]

It was a little bit of a rough day. And I just remember they were sweating and stuff. But it was. They were so kind and they were sticking around, you know, hanging out with us and just very humble down to earth. And I really enjoyed that conversation with crayons. It was amazing. That was such a good, Amazing.

[B]

And he had you on his podcast right after and recorded it in here to talk about your book. People pleaser.

[A]

Yep. Changed out the background. He put up some of his records in place of pictures that we used to have there. It was so awesome.

[B]

We just have one picture there because all the others have fallen down.

[A]

They have. We don't replace them.

[B]

Our expertise is not interior design.

[A]

Jeremy just puts a plant behind my head because he's like, this will solve it. And I didn't. I was like, it's fine. A blank wall is fine. I am not. This is. Okay. This is something funny to talk about for one second. This is not podcast related, but it is public life related. The amount of you who have very graciously commented on my posts on Instagram and said, hey, Ginger, do you have something against pictures on the wall? Do you have something. Is it religious related that you don't have pictures on the wall in your house? And I look around, I'm like, we do have pictures, but very few given the amount of wall space we have.

[B]

True.

[A]

It's because I'm so. I have a hard time committing. I will not just put a hole in the wall.

[B]

Yeah, she has a hard time committing until she finds a $10 like, replica like print of a painting at Goodwill and then throws it up as the centerpiece in our living room.

[A]

I did that.

[B]

It's actually perfect.

[A]

In our last piece that we found for our living room is a massive painting. We wanted a big painting of Paris. And it's gorgeous. And it's actually, like. You can see the strokes of, like, the brush, you know, that painted it. It's amazing. Like, it looks gorgeous.

[B]

So they actually both fit really perfectly.

[A]

They were both thrifted.

[B]

Can't knock them.

[A]

And they look so good. I stood there in the thrift store staring at it. I'm like, should I buy this? Should I not? Should I buy this? Should I not? Now, one of them was more expensive than the other.

[B]

Okay, can we. I just want to say this because I think you guys will relate to this. Ginger. Ginger. The amount of times I've said that in my life.

[A]

Ginger.

[B]

Ginger will have an existential crisis about a purchase because of the expense. And then I'll say, well, how much is it? And it's like, well, this one's $40, and this one's, like, 45.

[A]

The other one, to be fair, was 150. And they gave it to me for half price. Right.

[B]

That's more significant. Oh, they did give it to you for.

[A]

Well, I think it was on sale, and I didn't know that.

[B]

This is an original painting of Paris. It's beautiful, and it is beautiful.

[A]

It's huge.

[B]

It's huge. And I don't know why I'm saying everything you're saying again. We do need more paintings. We're not iconoclastic. We do. They'll shout out some church history there. We love paintings.

[A]

It's just. We need to have somebody come to our house and tell us what to do. So we did that with the girls room. We had our friend Becca come, and she designed their room, and it looks gorgeous. Right? She designed this studio, and it looks beautiful. We do not have that gift. We cannot. I don't think that we'll pull the trigger. You have more of an eye for design than I do, actually. You have aesthetics, clothes, things like that. You have an eye for that stuff more than I would. But I'm also like. You had the idea of, like, using Picasso pictures in here.

[B]

He's off camera right now, but, yeah,

[A]

it's back in the corner. So we have a couple Picasso.

[B]

Like, when we have guests, you'll see Picasso.

[A]

They're really beautiful and really nice. But I was like, I don't have any eye for that stuff. Like, I'm not visionary with that. But needless to say, our walls would have nothing on them at all if it wasn't for you, because you're like, we should put a painting. So I did select the paintings, but I did not buy them like the first one without you. I was like, does this look good or does this look horrible? Because I don't want our house to look dated. It's kind of tricky. It's like an older home needs little charact. It has a lot of character, but it needs a touch of something a little bit modern, not too old. Otherwise the whole house looks old. So we don't really know what our style is. I think we need somebody to help us. But needless to say, this has nothing

[B]

to do with the podcast Lecrae to them.

[A]

This is my brain this morning.

[B]

Well, shout out to Lecrae.

[A]

We want to take a break from this episode to tell you about function Health.

[B]

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[A]

Yeah, it's amazing because they test for all these biomarkers in your body, hundreds of them. And I think that it's easy to think, oh, I feel great. You know, I don't have that many issues. But it's good to know what's actually happening so you can take control of your health.

[B]

And here's something people think if they're exercising on the outside, everything's good on the inside. That training gives your body the stimulus, but your internal environment determines what actually is going on if you're actually healthy. Things like your glucose, whether your body is burning clean or running on fumes. Your omega 6 to omega 3 ratio, which one is winning the inflammation battle after every hard workout session. Things like this that you don't really think about. So here's what you need to do. Check your health the way that we do. Function provides 160 plus lab tests for a dollar a day and member pricing on MRI and CT scans. [e-mail] ginger or use code ginger25 for a $25 credit toward your membership.

[A]

We want to take a break from this episode to tell you about cure.

[B]

I have, as an athlete, tried so many electrolyte brands over the years. I'll tell you which one is my favorite cure.

[A]

Oh, yeah. I actually drink cure every single day as well because it is something that I've realized in the season of Life I desperately need.

[B]

And the flavors are delicious.

[A]

Yes. I was literally at the beach yesterday and it was so hot and I got home. And I was like, I need a cure packet. Because it was so much sweating, so warm. And that actually helped me to replenish everything that I had lost and feel so much better.

[B]

Ginger, here are some flavors I want you to tell me your favorite. Peach, mango, berry pomegranate, watermelon, lemonade, strawberry, kiwi, ginger, turmeric.

[A]

That should be my favorite.

[B]

White, orange, tropical punch. Do you have a favorite?

[A]

Berry pomegranate is my favorite in strawberry kiwi.

[B]

Yeah. Makes sense. They're real ingredients. No added sugar, no artificial sweeteners, nothing you can't pronounce that's important.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Cure Hydration is officially in Target now, which we're excited about because we hit Target up a lot. It's right down the street. Or you can go to curehydration.com with our code ginger for 20% off.

[A]

Now back to the episode.

[B]

The guest for me that first comes to mind is a Ting Mo. Yes, she was our first guest.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And here's something really funny and I'm going to come at you guys as our listeners for a second. It sometimes is so the podcast world is so confusing.

[A]

It really is.

[B]

To figure out, dang. What you guys will listen to week in, week out. And I don't just mean for our podcast. I've seen this across many podcasts where one week it's like they'll have a guest and a billion gazillion people tune in, the next week they have another guest. And this is like, these are like well established podcasts and the guests could be really famous, really interesting, really successful, have a fascinating insight into life and nobody clicks. And I've wondered, how is it that across the board, like, everybody drops off and throughout, like us inviting guests on, it's been interesting to see some guests will explode and we go, oh, wow, that was a great episode. But didn't think it would resonate the way it did.

[A]

Some of them have a massive following.

[B]

Yeah. And then some. And they do fine, but it doesn't explode. And you think, oh, that's interesting. And so it's just been funny, like different guests coming on and seeing what you guys want to listen to. Maybe you can leave us a comment and say, these are the people we want to hear from. But yeah, it's just funny in podcast land.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I remember a friend, It's a wild world. A friend of ours in the podcast world came out to LA and interviewed this person who's like a household name. And they have a really, really, really established podcast that gets a ton of interest every week. And they thought, this will be our biggest podcast ever. This person's a household established name. And, like, nobody listened to it.

[A]

And they were just, like, so fascinating, huh? It's crazy.

[B]

How do you do this thing?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Anyway, Ating Mo. Oh. She was our first guest Olympian. One of the fastest women in the world, a strong believer.

[A]

That was an awesome conversation.

[B]

That was really cool. Just to get into her mind as a competitor, and hearing her story made

[A]

me want to go, you know, actually try to work out and be strong again, because I think I was in a season after having a baby, and I'm like, oh, or before? Was it right before I had Finna? Right after. And I just remember feeling like, wow, this is so inspiring. Yeah, it's incredible.

[B]

Speaking of episodes that were kind of shocking, I was shocked by how deeply our episode with Kosti Hinn resonated with everyone, because we did this episode with Kosti. He's the nephew of Benny Hinn, this really worldwide famous health, wealth and gospel charlatan who, you know, cheats people out of their money, tells them God's going to heal them, and then just tricks them. And it's just incredible to see that guy's fame. And Costi would travel with his uncle and go to the healing services, do all this stuff, but then actually met Jesus and realized the gospel. This is not the gospel. And I thought that story would just be, like, kind of theological or, like, I didn't know if it'd resonate with our audience, you know, if they wouldn't be so into that. And it exploded.

[A]

It's insane. Yeah, it blew up. Yeah, it's crazy. I think it's so. It is so unpredictable. Like, I have guests that I'm thinking, oh, this would be really fun to invite this person. But I'm probably the only person who's gonna listen to the podcast.

[B]

Podcast.

[A]

Because I know them.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And they have a really fascinating story. And so it's tricky because you want to have people that, you know are lining up with what you all want to listen to. But then there's also these interests that I have on the side that I'm like, oh, this would be so much fun to have this guest on and chat about life.

[B]

Is there a guest that shocked you in terms of, like, you thought the episode would be like, oh, this will be interesting to talk to them, or whatever. But then you got into the conversation and realized, whoa, this is just so fascinating, or anything like that?

[A]

Yeah, I think there were quite a few of those. And I Have to think back to my favorite, because, I don't know, I mean, I was thinking of a recent one that I was really inspired by was Shawn Johnson and Andrew East. I feel like any of those that are going to empower you to want to do better in life in general as a whole, with your kids, with your. Even your health, all those things and the commitment side of things that they talked about, I loved it. I felt like it was very deep and rich, but also real and relatable. Like, it was relatable to me in this season of life and just ultimately like that commitment that they were talking about committing to something and doing it. And I'm thinking about that for our

[B]

kids, for myself, that was a transform, transformational episode because, yeah, it was very encouraging for us personally. But then you're right, I was, as I was listening to them, I was just thinking through all the implications for us as parents.

[A]

Yeah, the parenting advice on that one was strong.

[B]

You know, which one I would point to is we did an episode with our friend Dean McMahon.

[A]

Oh, man. Yeah, that's maybe two weeks after I said, oh, man.

[B]

McMahon.

[A]

McMahon.

[B]

Oh, McMahon.

[A]

Oh, man.

[B]

It was probably two weeks after he and his family lost their home in the. The Palisade fire or Eaton.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

A few couple years ago, the Palisade fires. Eaton fires just completely wiped out hundreds, thousands of homes. And Dean is this young guy. I think he's like 22, 23. And Buddy of ours, known him in church for a long time. And just to watch him and his family walk through that devastation was mind blowing. For such a young guy to have endured something like that and to respond the way he did, I mean, if you want to have. And it wasn't like this really downer episode. It was honestly interesting, fascinating, because we were living through this historic moment in Los Angeles, California history. And to see someone so affected by it, I mean, he literally woke up in the middle of night to embers falling in their backyard. And within an hour or two, their house was consumed and they were on the road with a few possessions. I mean, that kind of experience is life changing. And it was for us, just sitting there, listening to Dean tell it.

[A]

Oh, yeah, it was incredible. And then I think talking to his mom and dad even later, after just hearing their hearts on just everything, I think holding to your possessions loosely and realizing that, you know, it's all a gift from God. And that's something that is so unthinkable, like lose childhood possessions, all of the things. But then also you just realize how fragile life is too, in general. And those fires just wipe out everything that you built and worked for for all those years in seconds. And so, yeah, even yesterday, we were driving around and there was, like, a big fire. I could see the smoke coming from far away. And Felicity's like, do we need to pack up the house? Cause she knows. She's like, is it fire season? Do we need to pack up the house, or should we just be ready? And I was like, oh, it's not close to our house. It's okay. But there's that reality of, like, okay, you know, you just are always holding everything with an open hand. I think that's what I loved about their story, was that as hard as it was, they came through on the other side with a deep trust in God, regardless of the circumstance.

[B]

Right. Scripture says that all flesh is like grass. Right. And that's a moment, like, that reminds you all of these things that we spend so much time worrying about and treasuring can be gone in a second. I was looking in the mirror the other day just thinking, like, man, it is so fleeting, this life, this body, time. Time is just constantly ticking away. The weeks fly by, you know? So, man, that was a powerful episode. One of the cool things about doing a podcast is, especially with these guests, is stuff happens. And we have all these experiences that are fun, unexpected, and in the moment. Maybe it stresses you out or you don't realize how fun it is or what a memory is being created. One of those, for me, was our episode with Stephen McWhirter.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

He SINGS Come, Jesus, come.

[A]

Yeah, tell him about this. We wanna take a break from this episode to tell you about article.

[B]

Guess what we're doing. We're sitting on furniture. Furniture in your house is important. If you don't have furniture in your house, you're either a bachelor or you have nowhere to sit.

[A]

I like that you like that. That's right. That's awesome. Article furniture is the best because it's solid. It will last you.

[B]

Real wood.

[A]

Solid wood, yes. And the leather is so genuine that it's not going to peel like all those other ones will. It's just quality furniture that you know that when you invest in in it, you're going to be able to, like, pass that furniture down.

[B]

Yeah. Article's great. And one of the things that I've valued more and more as I've gotten older, still very young, but as I've gotten less young, is consistency. And if I find something I like, whether it's clothing, whether it's food. I just stick with it. Article is the go to. They're reasonable prices, they have great discounts and the furniture is fantastic and it's diverse so you can get it for the whole house. Here's the cool thing. Article is offering our listeners $50 off your first purchase of $100 or more. To claim, visit article.com ginger and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout. That's article.com ginger for $50 off your first order of a hundred dollars or more. I don't know what you're waiting for. Actually, you can do that simultaneously while listening to this podcast or wait for the podcast to be done and then go to article.com ginger50 dollars.

[A]

We want to take a break from this episode to tell you about Brooklyn Betting.

[B]

You know what we did last night? We slept on our Brooklyn bed.

[A]

Yes. And it was so comfortable. Especially like I said after being out at the beach. I was very tired and getting into our Brooklyn bed is the most comfortable thing in the world.

[B]

And here's the thing. Mattresses can be confusing and they can be expensive and you don't know why. You're paying $10,000 for a mattress and you're going, what is this? Brooklyn Bedding produces every single mattress in Arizona. There's no gimmicks, no middlemen. It allows them to have better pricing. They can slash pricing compared to the competitors and you know you're getting a quality product. I don't care who you are, you have a mattress and you probably need a new one. Check out Brooklyn Bedding.

[A]

Oh yeah. And if you sleep hot too, it's awesome. Because I feel like with Brooklyn Beds, I actually do not get as sweaty and I don't feel like I'm just picky. When I wake up and it ships

[B]

to your door rolled up, you take it out of the box. It's like super convenient.

[A]

Top tier quality.

[B]

Not sure if you can take our word for it. Brooklyn Bedding has been awarded the best mattress by CNET and best hybrid mattress by Wirecutter. So you know it's the real deal. Here's what you need to do. Go to BrooklynBedding.com use our promo code JJ at checkout to get 30% off site wide. If their deals weren't already good enough. 30% off site wide. This offer is not available anywhere else that brooklynbetting.com and promo code JJ for 30% off site wide support our show. Let them know we sent you after checkout brooklynbetting.com promo code JJ now back to the episode, Stephen had just come out with a book. And we actually got connected with him through our publishers because he was publishing his book with HarperCollins. And so they said, hey, would you want to have Stephen on the show? And I wasn't familiar with Stephen.

[A]

I was.

[B]

Yeah, because, I mean, you loved that song Come Jesus, Come. And he had just won a Dove award for it. CeCe Winans had just won a Grammy covering the song this really big deal, this song, Come Jesus, Come. I mean, I'm sure many of you guys have listened to it, and probably a thousand times since, you know, he came on. I've listened to it probably 8 million times. But we're getting ready to have Stephen on. And I'm leading chapel. At the university where I work, we have chapel three times a week. And I was gonna do announcements in chapel and then leave to come home and record the podcast. Cause it was the only time that we could make it work. Make it work. But at like, 10:30 at night, the night before, I thought, wait a second, why doesn't Stephen sing in chapel? Like, he should sing this song to these students and then come record the podcast. And I had never talked to Stephen before. We had never connected before. And I shoot him a text and go, hey, man, totally random ask. Like, I don't know how this works with. With you guys, like, musicians. I don't know if you need your vocal prep or whatever, but we got chapel in the morning. Would you want to sing Come Jesus, Come? Well, of course. He's coming from the east coast, so there's a time difference. So he doesn't respond because he's asleep, you know, getting rest early. And I wake up to a text at 6am he goes, sure, man. I would love to. What time do you need me there?

[A]

It's amazing.

[B]

And I'm like, 8:30. So he shows up, does a run through. Everyone there is kind of like prepping chapel, like, whoa, who's this guy? You know? Cause you. You can tell when you're in the presence of a singer.

[A]

Oh, yeah. He has an amazing voice.

[B]

Incredible, right? Remember when Cade Fainer came over to our house?

[A]

Yes. Oh, I will never forget. I will never forget Felicity. I will never forget. Felicity was crying so hard. She was a baby. And he has such a strong voice. Cade pulled out his guitar in our

[B]

little living room in Laredo, Texas.

[A]

Yeah. It was like we had tile floors, so everything echoed. Had a little rug on the. The tiny living room. And he whips out his guitar. Cause you asked him to sing some Songs. And he started singing. And Felicity just lost her mind, screaming, because it was. He has such a strong voice. It just carried. And it was super loud, really quick. And she loved watching him play. And then just, like, it was too loud for her.

[B]

Oh, yeah. But I remember that moment.

[A]

Because you have that strong voice.

[B]

Yeah. I remember thinking in that moment, like, oh, wow, this is a singer. Like, this is a loud microphone. Yes. Like, God has put some vocal cords in this brother. And that's what it was with Stephen. So we pull up and it's like this impromptu thing, and I just open up chapel and I tell the students, hey, you guys have probably heard the song. I mispronounced it. I constantly come, Lord Jesus.

[A]

Because you're thinking of Revelation 22.

[B]

The Bible ends with John saying, come, Lord Jesus. And so I kept saying, come, Lord Jesus. You know his hit song, come, Lord Jesus. And he would go into the mic, come, Jesus, come. I go, oh, sorry. So it's funny, the intro. I meet him outside, we talk for, like, five minutes, and I get up on stage, and I don't know why I said this, but I said, you know, we've got our good friend Steve McWhirter with us. And I'm thinking, good friend, you know? Like, I've known him for five minutes, but I'm thinking, like, more, you know,

[A]

everybody's loves to see him and knows him.

[B]

He goes, it was so funny. He's a funny dude. He goes, good friend. It's Steven. And I went, I'm sorry, Stephen McWhorter.

[A]

Okay. But something you have to know about Jeremy is that he shortens everyone's name or gives them a name that's not their name as their nickname. So actually, this happened. I was telling somebody literally two days ago. I said, I'm so confident with people I meet, I will say their name.

[B]

Oh, man.

[A]

And I will say it so confidently and call them by their name. And then I don't know if it's correct, because you are so good at coming up with unique names that kind of align to their name, but it's just a little different. Or, like, one guy in our Bible study, you called him, like, a totally different name every time you saw him. Yeah, every time you saw him. But I just heard you call him, like, one name, and I just went with it.

[B]

Yeah, it wasn't his name.

[A]

It was bad. And you were like, that's not his name. That's not his name. I'm like, that's what you called him?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I don't know what you're talking about. So that's something about you, though. You always shorten names. So Steven.

[B]

Steven. Steve is a natural short name. But he. It was just funny because he left. It was so last minute because he

[A]

has Steve with him.

[B]

Oh, yeah, that's right. Steve was with him.

[A]

His buddy Steve is buddy. So you have to have Steven and Steve.

[B]

So the students are kind of like, it's 9am on a Monday morning and they're like, what's going on? And he belts out, come Jesus, come on the little keyboard. And everybody was just sitting there like, whoa. Because you. I mean, first of all, they knew the song, most of them. And then you hear that. It's incredible in this smaller setting. And then he packed up and ran over and we did the podcast.

[A]

That was awesome.

[B]

It was a lot of fun.

[A]

He signed a book for Felicity.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Cause she loves the song too. It's awesome.

[B]

We've handled some really difficult subjects on the podcast. There have been times where we've talked. I mean, this has almost been like therapy. It's crazy, you and I sitting here every week.

[A]

Therapy without the therapist.

[B]

Yeah. It's like we're self medicating.

[A]

It's been so much fun, like just being able to sit down. It's crazy when you have kids and there's so much chaos. And we do date nights. We do all of that. But the cool thing about the POD is that when we're talking about just life in general in this way, like in front of a camera, it's so fun. It's so much fun. There are old stories that will come up from your childhood that it just sparks something and you're like, oh, wait, oh yeah, we're talking about money. This is how I saved as a kid. Or here's a story of when I was bullied. You know, I remember learning one of those stories even from the pod, when we were talking about just our new kids book, you know, you always belong. And that was really interesting for me because, like, some of those things will come up in natural conversation. We've been married nine years and we have great conversations every single day. But it's really awesome how the podcast provides such a sweet time for us to just sit down and in the middle of the day and chat about all different topics.

[B]

But you know what is, we do have good conversations every day, but not always this intentional. And one of the things that the podcast has done has requires intentionality. So you've got to intentionally sit down

[A]

and focus on a topic.

[B]

What are we going to talk about or. And it's the best thing. If you guys have enjoyed the podcast, we're so grateful for you and we're, we're grateful that it's blessed you in any way. It has. But we're the first beneficiaries of it. Like, we're the ones who enjoy the time together the most. And that's really sweet because then that keeps you motivated too, throughout. Because it can be tough. You know, thinking of a weekly podcast, I think people are starting to understand what goes into it now because podcasting is such a bigger platform. I think for a long time people like, they would see ads on the show and go, why are you doing ads? You're just talking on your couch on a mic. Don't do ads. And you go, well, it costs. Actually there's tons of money that goes into this.

[A]

It costs a lot of money to make a pod.

[B]

Editors, producers, equipment, equipment, traveling. It's like there's a lot that goes into it and people are starting to realize that now. And that can become draining, that can become a lot. But what we get out of it is, is so worth it. And that's where even for you and me, like, I'm grateful for the time that we have to set aside. Like even this morning, you know, we're a bit rushed because our electricity is going to get shut off.

[A]

Well, that is a little nerve wracking when you, when you're supposed to be recording your hundredth pod. You know, I actually curled my hair this morning. You probably can't tell. I will have to say this about my hair. Hold on one second. About my hair. This is one of my things. When I look on the clips, I never rewatch the pod after we've done it because I've, I was on it. But I'll see those clips that, that are edited into the reels and I'm like, oh, my goodness, Ginger, just do your hair. But this is the thing. I, I've seen people who have their hair done and their makeup done by, they have a wardrobe person. And I know a lot of podcasters do that and that is fantastic. I would love to do that one day. But the reason I haven't is because, you know, I'm, for one, I can do it myself. But then it doesn't look that great. But I'm like, I'm not a professional. But also timing. This podcast has been recorded at the strangest hours in the day. We're not, we're both.

[B]

Time's it right now. Yeah, it's 17 in the morning.

[A]

Yeah, it's crazy. It's, like, still early. This is probably the earliest we've ever done a pod. I don't even know for sure, but most of the time, we're doing it mid afternoon or on Jer's lunch break, or we're doing it late at night after our kids are in bed. They're all tucked away in bed. And this studio, by the way, is in our house. So we'll have the baby monitor on, and we can see the kids are good and sleeping, and then we'll just run up here and record. But that's why half the time I look sleep deprived. My hair's not done or my makeup's not done for half of the ads. Because we run up and we're like, oh, my goodness. We put effort into the pod, but they're also like, life happens. And there have been so many times where situations happen, like the electricity is, you know, it's turned off, or the AC doesn't work in here. We have to replace all the ac. So we're kind of. We're pushing it out, like, five days trying to get work done in here, and then finally we get it back on. So we have one hour to record, to send it off to the editor to get it out in time. You're up at, you know, the wee hours of the morning, posting, getting ready, getting everything.

[B]

Like very mom and pop organization it is.

[A]

A lot of. There's grassroots root efforts here that are happening between friends, between Jeremy, he has done so much work on making this happen, and I just have to say thank you, babe, for that. He has all, like, the screen, the. Whatever you call that. I can't even think of the name on YouTube.

[B]

The thumbnails.

[A]

Thumbnails. He'll do all of that for us.

[B]

And which is why they change all the time, because I can't decide on what the thumbnail should look like. Sorry about that, guys.

[A]

It's okay. You do a great job. But anyhow, with that, needless to say, half the time I'll look back, I'll see a reel like that has been wonderfully created. And I'm like, oh, my goodness, I look so scared, sleep deprived. But it's like 10pm we were recording.

[B]

Hey, that's the beauty of the pod, though, is this isn't a high production. This is real life. We're sitting down, having conversations. You know what we should do? Like that.

[A]

I was like, it's the hundredth. You know how to actually try to do my hair.

[B]

Oh, it looks beautiful. I think it always looks beautiful together.

[A]

Not looking great.

[B]

She always complains, and I'm like, what are you talking about? It's hair.

[A]

And it looks like a military hairstyle, slicked back. Nothing against military hairstyles, but, you know,

[B]

we should do, like, a montage. You know how people take a picture of their face every day for five years. We can do a montage of what we look like and, well, you look insane.

[A]

You look great. You just throw a hat on two minutes and you're ready.

[B]

I don't. I'm a mess. But the power of a hat.

[A]

I like that. By the way, camo's looking good.

[B]

You can't see me. That's crazy. So here's something. What was an episode that surprised us with how wide the reach went and how much impact it had?

[A]

Your mom's mom.

[B]

Okay. Yes.

[A]

Your mom's episode that we did. I loved that she talked about Swan for Kids, her nonprofit organization where she helps kids whose parents are incarcerated with music mentoring. And she went more into her story in her upbringing and childhood. And how she got to. How she ended up becoming a professional violinist was through trauma. That was her escape.

[B]

If you haven't heard that episode. A lot of, you know, my mom has invested so much in the most vulnerable children in the world, really, children whose parents have a history of incarceration, and they go from house to house. They're the forgotten ones. And you just think about that. If there's a family who something happens, domestic abuse or something, and the parents are taken away, what happens to the kids? Well, they just get shipped off to the nearest relative, and it's unstable oftentimes. And my mom has invested. She's created a program where those children are given music mentoring after school. And the power of that is music developing these young children's minds and giving them the disciplines that are required for life is transformative, and it's therapeutic.

[A]

So they have also. They have other trauma informed helpers there, too, who are counselors who are ready to help, because a lot of them, you know, if they need extra support, a lot of things come out through music where you're. You're investing.

[B]

Well, they can express themselves.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

For themselves. So she's had children 11, 10, 12 years old who have witnessed murders, like, in their homes. And they will come to this program with, you know, clenched jaw, clenched fist, and they're angry and they're lashing out. And it's the kind of person, the kind of child that others who don't have care Will look at and disregard and say, get out of my classroom. I don't want anything to do with them. Keep my kids away. My mom is running toward those kids, and after two weeks of putting a drum kit before them or a cajon in front of them, the child is like this transformed kid who's expressing themselves, who's laughing, who's having the time of their life. And you just think, wow, the power of music. But really the power of someone. Oh, Jin, it wouldn't be our hundredth episode if we didn't need tissue.

[A]

It's okay. I just know we have some somewhere. Thank you.

[B]

It's incredible, this ministry that she's doing and that episode. If you go back and listen to that episode, what you hear isn't a pitch for, you know, whatever, a nonprofit. My mom just tells her story and it explains her life. She became this world class professional violinist, touring the world with the St. Louis Symphony. Yeah. But that was birthed out of an upbringing filled with trauma and abuse, like, horrible abuse. She watched her father be so abusive. She escaped it because of her music. And she said, I'm gonna get out of this house and my violin's my ticket out. And that created a life devoted to

[A]

serving others with that.

[B]

And Swan stands for scaling walls a note at a time. These prison walls are being scaled by these children through music. And here's the thing I just want to say as a thank you to you guys. We think about this podcast as a weekly conversation. It's just incredible opportunity to have conversations with my wife, put it on the Internet, get to interact with you guys. And sometimes it can be really trivial. You can think, what are we doing this for? Or is this really the way we invest our time? And then it's moments like that episode with my mom where we remember just how powerful communication is, how powerful the Internet is, how powerful being able to share stories with all of you and you share them with us is because your response to that episode has been overwhelming. The amount of support that you guys have poured into my mom's nonprofit and her efforts to save these children has been unbelievable. And one of the things that a lot of you have noted who've given financially to my mom's nonprofit swan is she will write a handwritten note to every single person who gives. Doesn't matter the size of the gift. You will receive a handwritten note from my mom thanking you because she knows that she's boots on the ground helping these kids. But it's really people like you who make that possible. And are changing these children's lives 100%. That was an incredible episode.

[A]

Amazing.

[B]

I've got to say. The one that came to my mind was the one where you, Ginger. Sorry, you are Ginger. I know this. You, Joy, and Jessa sat down and talked about your experiences with miscarriage. Yeah, we knew that that would be an impactful episode. I don't think we knew just how impactful it would be.

[A]

Yeah, that was something that. For talking about miscarriage in that way. I think so many people have had experiences, sadly, where they've kind of been discounted in their pain because a lot of people just don't understand. And so talking about what to say, what not to say, is also helpful from people who have experienced miscarriage in different stages, too. Like, for me, it was an earlier miscarriage for my sister Jessa a little bit later on, and then with Joy, hers was even later. And then even Jill and her miscarriage and the difficulty that you experience and the pain and the grief that lingers for years. I think that that was such. Such a helpful podcast in hearing. I think that the messages from you all. That was something that really touched our hearts was hearing your stories of how much even that episode helped, but then also the stories that you were willing to open up and share with us that were vulnerable and hard. Yeah, that was definitely a top episode. And, I mean, I think that it's tricky when you. You know, you have to sit down and talk about those things, but I think that the willingness of the girls to do that was so sweet, because even for us as sisters, we did not have the opportunity to, like, specifically sit down and talk multiple times about that. But the podcast provided that space, and they were. They were like, I feel like this would be so helpful just for those who feel alone walking through miscarriage and don't share it with anyone. There have been many women who said, I have never shared that I had miscarriage with anyone. And they were realizing some of that difficulty and trauma. Some may never share, but others were like, oh, I could see how this could actually be helpful to even those who are experiencing it now.

[B]

It's a misunderstood grief. Yeah, man. So we've had multiple episodes like that that have been really impactful. Okay, Ginge, we're on a tight timeline here, because our electricity's gonna.

[A]

They're literally gonna just turn back.

[B]

I hear the truck outside. So here's what we're gonna do. You ready for this, Ginge?

[A]

I'm ready.

[B]

Our last little segment here, we're gonna give some awards away Awards. Yeah, that. You gotta. I don't have a physical.

[A]

Okay. Let me actually just go print them off now.

[B]

Most competitive guest.

[A]

Most competitive.

[B]

First person comes to mind. I would say.

[A]

I mean, Sydney and Sean.

[B]

That's it. Sean or Sydney and a ting. The Olympians.

[A]

That's crazy.

[B]

We've had three gold medalists, some of the most elite athletes.

[A]

Wild.

[B]

Funniest guest.

[A]

You. Who's the funniest?

[B]

Who's the funniest? I think Andrew east was actually him and I just had the same sense of humor. And we could hang out for a long time.

[A]

Oh, yeah. You guys would be best buds.

[B]

Guest we'd most want babysitting our kids.

[A]

Your mom.

[B]

Good answer, Ginge. That's.

[A]

She does.

[B]

Yep. I can't debate that one. The best guest we'd most want on a road trip.

[A]

Oh, my goodness. My sister Joy.

[B]

Yeah, I thought Joy and Austin.

[A]

She's so fun.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

So fun.

[B]

Guest we'd most want during a zombie apocalypse.

[A]

This is a good one. You. You go.

[B]

Oh, I have to think.

[A]

I have to think through everyone.

[B]

Zombie apocalypse. What do you need in a zombie apocalypse?

[A]

You need to survive.

[B]

I can't say the word. You need to survive.

[A]

I think Ali best ducky.

[B]

Beth's ducky.

[A]

She has a supply of food.

[B]

Does she?

[A]

In her basement.

[B]

Ginger's a related girl. So Ali Beth is great. Yeah. Courageous. Strong and courageous. Guess we'd most want to start a business with.

[A]

A business.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, Carly Jean.

[B]

Yes, Carly Jean.

[A]

I mean, she's brilliant.

[B]

Yeah, you're right.

[A]

Who are you gonna say?

[B]

Rachel Cruz.

[A]

Rachel Cruz. Oh, my goodness. Yes. But I was thinking established business. Carly Jean. She's amazing. Chad and Carly built so much fun.

[B]

Built on the ground.

[A]

And I love her, all of her stuff. She continues to start businesses.

[B]

That was an episode that got a little slept on. We had Carly Jean Brannon and her husband Chad. Chad was Xander from General Hospital. People. I mean, come on. This is like peak primetime soap opera. And they met and fell in love. And she has launched CJLA, which, look, 98% of our listeners are ladies. If you guys haven't checked out Carly Jean Los Angeles clothing, go for it. What are you doing? I bet that jacket's Carly Jean Los Angeles actually probably is guest we'd most want at Thanksgiving. I have one. You go, Jackson. Because he did come to Thanksgiving and he's a lot of fun.

[A]

That's hilarious.

[B]

That was a good time. Okay. Well, Ginge, this has been fun. Here's to 100 more episodes. Here's one question after 100 episodes, what belief about people has become stronger for you?

[A]

I think how resilient people are through the trials of life. We've had a lot of people share the joys and the challenges. And I think that just hearing their resilience because of Christ in them and ultimately giving them the strength to get through whatever the Lord sends their way, I think that that ultimately has really changed my perspective on a lot of things. Because it's easy to say, oh, I trust God and difficult circumstances, but then when you have Granger Smith sit down and tell you about his. The tragedy that, you know, they faced with their son, I think those stories really impact you. And seeing how they can have joy and walk forward in life, that was something that, you know, and it really is something that I'm going to take away from these the past hundred episodes.

[B]

I'd say that people are more complicated than they appear in public, in public perception.

[A]

I like that.

[B]

To sit down with someone who maybe you've just seen running down a track in the Olympics or on social media or in a music video and have a conversation with them and you realize, oh, this is just a person. They're human. They're having every human experience we have and there's a lot more complexity to their story than I may have.

[A]

And giving them the time day to hear them out on their, you know, their story and their life and their upbringing. Yeah, it is fascinating. I love it.

[B]

Well, I've loved this time with you. I love you.

[A]

And I love you.

[B]

We're grateful for all of you. Thanks for tuning in to the 100th episode of the Ginger and Jeremy podcast. We will see you next week.