Transformational Question 3

Summary

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The Wake-Up Call — Episode Summary

Episode Title: Transformational Question 3
Host: John David Walt
Date: April 4, 2026
Theme: Exploring the depth of our desire for Jesus through reflection at the tomb on Holy Saturday.

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Episode Overview

This episode, hosted by John David Walt on Holy Saturday, centers on the third and final "Transformational Question": "How deep is my desire for Jesus?" The host guides listeners through a meditation at the tomb, weaving together scripture, personal narrative, hymns, and ancient wisdom to encourage deep, reflective longing for Christ.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Holy Saturday at the Tomb

• Host Reflection (00:04): JD Walt invites listeners to imagine sitting at the empty tomb with Jesus, reflecting quietly on the pivotal moment between crucifixion and resurrection.
  • “I kind of like the idea that we have walked up with Jesus to the tomb...and I just picture us kind of seated on rocks as Jesus lifts himself up and sits on the big round stone that once sealed that tomb.” (00:22)
• A sense of anticipation and waiting defines this sacred pause.

2. The Transformational Questions

• Recounting the Journey:
  • #1: Am I growing?
  • #2: Do I really want to change?
  • #3: How deep is my desire for Jesus? (05:15)
• JD Walt quotes Maxie Dunnam, who originally asked him these guiding questions. He revisits the feeling of being floored by the third:
  • “How deep is my desire for Jesus? That word hit soft and then hard. Desire. Not duty or discipline, no sense of ought or should. Desire.” (05:40)
  • “Desire is want touched with holy fire. Let me say that again. Desire is want touched with holy fire.” (06:05)

3. Scriptural Anchor

• Philippians 3:10-11 is the day’s scripture:
  • “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” (06:16)
• Walt comments on memorization and the enduring resonance of this passage.
• Insight: “If want swims in the current of need, desire dwells in the ocean of love.” (06:50)
  • Desire is not just aspiration; it is fueled by love.

4. Hymn Meditation: "O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus"

• The hymn is sung and referenced as the emotional core of the episode, interwoven with the question of desire (07:21–10:00).
  • Memorable Moment: Walt leads the community in singing the hymn’s verses:
    • “O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free, rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me.” (07:23)
  • He makes the connection: “This is a song about Jesus’ deep desire for me.” (08:33)
  • “It lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee.” (08:43)

5. Reversal: Jesus’ Desire for Us

• Walt realizes the heart of transformation is not just our desire for Jesus but also recognizing His infinite desire for us:
  • “It’s like I am asking Jesus, how deep is your desire for me? And he stretches out his arms and motions as he asks, how high, how deep, how wide, how long?” (09:10)
• The ancient wisdom of Mother Julian of Norwich is invoked. Walt reads:
  • “Our Lord Jesus said again and again, it is I, it is I…whom you love, whom you delight in, whom you serve, whom you desire...it is I who am all.” (10:45)

6. Reflection and Prayer

• Walt prays, drawing listeners into gratitude for Jesus’ Sabbath rest in the tomb and asking for awakening and deeper desire (12:00):
  • “Thank you for awakening us from our complacency to the depths of your desire for us…we declare our deep and ever deepening desire for you.” (12:20)

7. Journal Prompt and Core Takeaway

• The journal prompt for listeners:
  • “So how deep is your desire for Jesus? Take your time…our desire for him is only limited by our comprehension and our ever-growing experience of knowing his desire for us...our desire for him is a direct response to the revelation of his desire for us.” (13:40)
• Listeners are invited to consider how real their awareness is of Christ’s desire for them.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On Desire:
  • “Desire is want touched with holy fire.” – J.D. Walt (06:05)
• On the Relationship:
  • “Our desire for him is a direct response to the revelation of his desire for us.” – J.D. Walt (14:10)
• On Jesus’ Desire:
  • “It is I whom you love, it is I whom you delight in, it is I whom you serve, it is I whom you long for, whom you desire. It is I whom you mean, it is I who am all.” – Mother Julian of Norwich, quoted by Walt (10:45)
• On Stillness:
  • “Well, this is probably good to just be quiet a little bit. Just linger. Let's linger at the tomb. Jesus is here. I sense he's good with quiet today. Just get quiet, listen for the birds to sing. And let him love you. Let Jesus love you today.” (15:51)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:22–02:15: Setting the scene and introducing Holy Saturday’s spiritual significance.
• 05:10–06:30: Introduction and impact of Transformational Question #3.
• 06:16: Scripture reading: Philippians 3:10-11
• 07:21–10:00: “O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus” hymn and reflection.
• 10:30–11:45: Quoting Mother Julian of Norwich.
• 12:00–13:30: Prayer of deep desire for Jesus.
• 13:40–14:30: Journal prompt and central challenge for reflection.
• 15:51–16:40: Invitation to quiet, lingering in the presence of Jesus.

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Tone & Final Reflection

The tone is meditative, gentle, and deeply encouraging. Walt speaks with warmth and vulnerability, inviting listeners not toward duty or religiosity, but into an honest long-view of longing for Jesus—a desire grounded in Christ’s overwhelming love.

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Core Takeaways

• The third transformational question asks not about growth or willpower, but the depth of our longing for Jesus.
• True desire is born in response to understanding how deeply Jesus desires us.
• Listeners are encouraged to meditate, reflect in stillness, and allow the revelation of Christ’s love to cultivate deeper desire in their own hearts.

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Recommended Next Step:
Take time in quiet today, as Walt recommends, to ponder:
"How deep is my desire for Jesus?" And beneath that, "How real is my experience of his desire for me?"

Transcript

[A]

Foreign.

[B]

Sower nation. It is Saturday, April 4th, in the year of our Lord 2026. Holy Saturday. I'm John David Walt, and this is your wake up call. Let's dive straight in. Wake up, sleeper. Rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you. Jesus, I belong to you. I lift up my heart to you. I set my mind on you. I fix my eyes on you. I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice. Jesus, we belong to you. And we're praying in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit. Amen. Well, today is holy Saturday. I kind of like the idea that we have walked up with Jesus to the tomb, the empty tomb, even though it's holy Saturday and we're remembering that the tomb was. Was full. And I just picture us kind of seated on rocks as Jesus lifts himself up and sits on the big round stone that once sealed that tomb. And he's going to meet with us this morning. We're all meeting together at the empty tomb and remembering the day that it held his lifeless body. Wow. All right, with that set up, today's entry is entitled. Drum roll please. Wait for it. Transformational question number three. Transformation. Transformational question number three. Okay, the text. Philippians, chapter three, verses ten and eleven. Hear now the word of the Lord. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death. Death. And so somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead the word of the Lord. I just went with my. My rememberized version of that, which is close to what that was. I rememberized a lot of scripture from the new international version, 1984 edition. And I just still not happy with those guys for changing to a new, new international version. Anyway, that's water under the bridge. Sometimes I'll revert back. It's okay. Now consider this. Now we come to the day known to history and eternity as Holy Saturday. It is the perfect day to come to the final question. So back to that day with Maxi. The time had finally come. I was going to learn transformational question number three. How did I know? Because Maxi was holding up three fingers across the table from me. Because Maxie likes to rehearse. His signature word is. Let me say that again. He asked me to recount the first two transformational questions. Number one, am I I growing? Number two, do I really want to change? And then he asked, are you ready for the third question? And without further ado, with no fanfare or drum rolls or further diversions, he dropped the third transformational question, like a microphone. How deep is my desire for Jesus? Although I had given eager and misguided responses to the first two questions, when Maxie asked the third, I just sat there in stunned silence. How deep is my desire for Jesus? That word hit soft and then hard. Desire. Not duty or discipline, no sense of ought or should. Desire. The word desire is like a first cousin to the watchword of Question number two, Want. Desire is want touched with holy fire. Let me say that again. Desire is want touched with holy fire. Then Maxi gave me the core text of transformational question number three, Philippians 3, verses 10 and 11. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so somehow to attain to the resurrection from the dead. If want swims in the current of need, desire dwells in the ocean of love. And yes, it inspires the question. How deep the old hymn comes to mind. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus Vast, unmeasured, boundless, free Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me. We've been singing this. This was our medley early in the week.

[A]

Let's go. Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus Vast, unmeasured, boundless, free Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me.

[B]

But the question was, how deep is my desire for Jesus?

[A]

Underneath me, all around me is the

[B]

current

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of thy love leading onward, leading homeward to my glorious rest above. This is a song about Jesus.

[B]

Deep desire for me

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O the deep, deep love of Jesus Tis a heaven of heavens to me and it lifts me up to glory for it lifts me up to Thee

[B]

and. And then it hit me. This is the whole point. It's like I am asking Jesus, how deep is your desire for me? And he stretches out his arms and emotions as he asks, how high, how deep, how wide, how long?

[A]

O the deep, deep love of Jesus Spread his praise from sure to shore how he loveth ever loveth changes Never, never more

[B]

how deep is my desire for Jesus? And still wordless, I remembered this ancient word from Mother Julian of Norwich in Revelations of Divine Love. And after this, our Lord showed Himself, more glorified to my eyes than I saw him before. By this I was taught that our soul shall never have rest till it comes to him, knowing that he is fullness of joy, friendly and courteous, blissful and very life, Our Lord Jesus said again and again, it is I, it is I It is I who am highest it is I whom you love it is I whom you delight in, it is I whom you serve. It is I whom you long for, whom you desire. It is I whom you mean, it is I who am all. And then an ocean of tears began to fall. Let's pray. Our Father, thank you for your son Jesus and Lord Jesus on this holy Saturday, dead and buried in the tomb, you rested from all your work. A Sabbath of all Sabbaths. Thank you for awakening us from our complacency to the depths of your desire for us. And by the power of the Holy Spirit, we declare our deep and ever deepening desire for you. It is well with our souls and we're praying in your name, Jesus. Amen. Here's the single journal prompt today. It's question, transformational question number three. So how deep is your desire for Jesus? Take your time. And really, you know, I think as I reflect on this, I think the point is our desire for him is only limited by our comprehension and our ever growing experience of knowing his desire for us, for me, for you. How real is your awareness and experience of his desire for you? That's maybe the question is the question underneath the question. Because our desire for him is a direct response to the revelation of his desire for us. Well, we've sung already, haven't we? Let's. Let's just. Let's just. Let's just try this one.

[A]

Were you there when they laid him in the tomb? Were you there when they laid him in the tomb? O. Sometimes it causes me to tremble,

[B]

tremble, tremble

[A]

Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?

[B]

Well, this is probably good to just be quiet a little bit. Just linger. Let's linger at the tomb. Jesus is here. I sense he's good with quiet today. Just get quiet, listen for the birds to sing. And let him love you. Let Jesus love you today. For the awakening. I'm j.d. walt. I'll see you on the field,

[A]

sam.