Halfway There

041: Dan Rudman and Ripples of the Gospel

Dan Rudman is an evangelist who works on campuses, prisons, and around the world to spread the Gospel. He shares how God called him to this life through circumstances that looked like failure.
Dan grew up in a traditional, moralist family but didn’t really go to church and so knew nothing about the Gospel. Heading into college he was “stiff-arming religion,” and floundered his freshman year. One day, a student was sharing a film by Josh McDowell talking about relationships and his own story of coming to faith. Dan wanted nothing to do with that so he left. But then he thought, “I wonder what he’s going to say. I wonder if it’s something I need to hear.”
He went back to the movie and heard McDowell encourage viewers to get a Bible and read the first three chapters of John. He found 1 John and by chapter 4 he was struck by a sense that evil was real. He realized that he was on the side of evil and needed the Son in his life but still didn’t know how to receive that life so he kept searching. Several weeks later he prayed to God: “If you have to take my life to give this to me, my life is yours.”
Shortly after giving his life to Christ, he was back at the bar he frequented and the song Highway to Hell came on. While everyone else rushed out to the dance floor Dan was overwhelmed with the reality that, absent Jesus, it’s true that we’re on a highway to hell. “Somebody has got to tell them,” he thought, running out of the bar.
The seeds of concern for people who don’t know God blossomed in time to a ministry that has taken Dan around the world preaching the Gospel. Dan wonders if the guy who showed that Josh McDowell film to his college dorm even knows what he did.
Great quotes from Dan:
I’m going to go find a Bible and read the contract. I want to see what this has to say before I commit to anything.
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“What about all these people outside of here? Are we going to go talk to them?”
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We have to love people enough to ask them questions.
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“If you have to take my life to give this to me, my life is yours.”
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The Gospel, this message is a powerful thing that God uses to call people to himself and you just never know.
Books and resources Dan mentioned:
The Francis A. Schaeffer Trilogy: Three Essential Books in One Volume
Kingdom Triangle: Recover the Christian Mind, Renovate the Soul, Restore the Spirit’s Power
YouDisciple.me
If you want to learn more about Dan or want to learn more about his ministry, go to AFCI.us.
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039: Tim Voss is on a Playful and Fantastic Adventure

Tim Voss taught physical education for 22 years at Trinity International University. Today he shares the story of how God called him to teaching, led him to Trinity after developing a program at Moody Bible Institute, and saw him through the most difficult moments of his life.
Those difficult moments revealed just how present God. His daughter went in for a procedure and died a week before her wedding. The grief, Tim says, was heavy. Even in the middle of that experience God placed the right people to share his grief and give the right grace to him. And while the grief never goes away, time does “insulate you” from the rawness of the emotion. Tim tells us how God brought him to some physical, outdoor experiences that helped him heal.
Today, Tim is working around the globe to bring the Gospel meeting tangible needs with International Needs. You’ll hear the passion in his voice as he talks about traveling in Africa and India to serve people “all the while bringing the love of Christ.”
Tim Voss is one of those teachers whose work influenced the direction of my life and I can’t wait to share his story with you.
Books & Links Tim mentioned:
Ender’s Game Boxed Set I: Ender’s Game, Ender’s Shadow, Shadow of the Hegemon (The Ender Quintet)
Sugar Creek Gang Books 1-6 Set (The Swamp Robber/The Killer Bear/The Winter Rescue/The Lost Campers/The Chicago Adventure/The Secret Hideout)
Christian Society for Kinesiology and Leisure
Great quotes from Tim:
Nowadays we rob a child in many respects from the breadth and depth of movement and freedom to become skilled in multiple activities.
Sportsmanship is dying to gamesmanship.
Don’t you want to come and join in this fantastic adventure with life this so precious? Every day is a gift and on your journey it becomes more and more sacred. Every day is richer and more beautiful.
He opened his arms and I fell into his chest and his arms wrapped around me. This guy with this heritage of suffering entered into my soul, and these arms of Christ, and his tears, just wept. And we really didn’t say anything. That was the beginning of my journey back.
The journey of the Christian is he becomes ever more aware of his sin and the incredible gift that God gave him.
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038: Jill May and Wrestling Truth and Reality

Jill May shares how she went from struggling mom and pastor’s wife to Season 1 winner of NBC’s Strong, a reality show that paired ordinary women with trainers and set them in competition with one another. Winning a reality show is very cool. But the story of God’s leading her there? Now that’s awesome.
Jill grew up in rural Minnesota to a church going family. Sometime in her late high school years during a period of asking the big questions about life she began reading the Bible which changed her life. Her new hunger for the Bible led her to Bible school where she met her husband.
After starting their family, they moved to Colorado to attend Denver Seminary. Several years later, after her husband Dan was called to serve as a pastor back in rural Minnesota, Jill began dealing with anxiety and began building walls. She explains how those walls began to come down with the revival of a bucket list item: going on a reality show.
Jill explains the process of how she applied for, was selected, and appeared on NBC’s Strong and the breakthroughs she experienced both physical and emotional on her way to winning it all.
Great quotes from Jill:
I like to describe my journey with God as a wrestle.
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When I look back, it can only bring me to that place of worship because He has been so sovereign over the process.
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When I was in my deepest darkest, rock bottom moments, I literally had times when I thought I was going to die because I was experiencing panic. I remember laying in my bed and thinking I can’t deliver myself from this. I cannot rescue myself.
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God was not far from me. At this point I was suffering but God was in one of the closest places I’ve ever had him. At that point I knew he was it. He was my only hope.
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It’s okay to be who you are. Why would you want to be someone else?
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The most honoring to God is to live into who He’s designed you to be.
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You can’t show me someone that’s doing poorly physically and tell me they’re in a good place mentally and spiritually.
If Jill’s story stirred something in you to begin a fitness journey, she would love to connect with you and the best way to do that is through social media. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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037: Mark Casson and The Clay’s Perspective

Mark Casson of Metanoia Prison Ministries shares how he found the Lord in prison while being tried for his crime. He shares the story of how how he pleaded guilty and the ways that God honored that brave choice, how he learned to fellowship with believers of all stripes, and how God used his experience to almost immediately after he left prison to serve prisoners all over the country.
Mark believes that prisoners are a neglected ministry in most churches (see Matthew 25:31-46) and is working to help churches do it better, sometimes to start for the first time. If you’re interested in prison ministry, please contact Metanoia Prison Ministries.
Great quotes from Mark:
Prison is one of the most spiritual environments a Christian can be in.
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In prison, there’s one body. It’s not segregated by denomination, belief, race, socioeconomic, education. It’s one body of Christ worshiping together because there’s only one chapel.
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The times we feel farther away are the times we get on our knees longer and we pray more and we draw closer to God.
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You are not defined by what you’ve done. You’re defined by Christ.
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I was freer in prison as a Christian than I’ve ever been free on the outside.
Mark offered his email address, too, in case you’re interested in participating with Metanoia Prison Ministries which is: mcasson@pcanet.org.
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036: Tonya Jewel Blessing and the Servants Who See the Miracles

Today, Tonya Jewel Blessing shares how she learned to love the mess and serve with a joyful heart. It wasn’t always easy and we talk about the long process God used to prepare her for life in rural South Africa. But the process was full of moments that inspired her to trust just a little bit more.
Tonya is also the author of The Whispering of the Willows (Amazon affiliate link), work of fiction that connects her to her roots. Her parents grew up in the area of Appalachia where the story is set and she drew from that inspiration. While she describes it as “a girl book,” (there is a budding romance in the selection she reads for us), the book is a fine depiction of the period and Tonya’s way with words makes for easy and delightful reading.
Listen today for the following stories:
How Tonya found Jesus
The choice Tonya had to make when she married her husband
How that choice led to rural and muddy Colorado and the spiritual struggle it ignited in her
The  prayers God answered in South Africa while serving in small towns
Great quotes from our conversation:
Ministry wasn’t just about standing in a pulpit preaching, it was about coming alongside people and helping people.
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If we respond to somebody else’s sin in a negative way and shocked by what someone has done, those ministry moments are lost.
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Serving God isn’t for the feint of heart.
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It’s the servants of God who see the miracles.
If you haven’t gone into iTunes to leave a rating & review for Halfway There, please do that right now! It helps more people find us. Thanks!
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035: Jesus Untangled Author Keith Giles and Separating Church from State

Today’s episode features author of Jesus Untangled: Crucifying Our Politics to Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb, Keith Giles (Amazon affiliate link which means if you buy from this link Amazon sends a little my way).
How integrated should the Kingdom of God and the leaders of a nation be? The question may seem strange to Evangelical ears when the objective of some for multiple decades has been to pass laws and “influence” political leaders. But just because this has been the case does not mean it is what ought to be.
Here, I need to give you a confession: I’m a political junkie. I like everything about politics including the maneuvering, the process of elections – especially at the presidential level – and watched with fascination the 2017 inauguration of Donald Trump as president. I worked, talked, and voted as conservatively as anyone in the 1990s and 2000s.
In fact, my first online experience was a blog about Christians in politics where I read and wrote about various policies and issues of the day. I even saw a Sarah Palin event once. So, I was invested in conservative politics, the Tea Party, and all that means.
But the blog found little traction and I began to alienate friends with my views which I was willing to do for the right cause but was unsure I had found it. Then, one day, I read a book that changed everything for me.
Free books was one of the main benefits of blogging and I received one by Os Guinness called A Free People’s Suicide. If you haven’t heard of it, that’s okay. Most people I talk to haven’t. But I love this book because it changed my life.
You can click that link above to read my full review if you’d like but here’s the life-changing point that he made: The Constitution matters less than the character of the people because adherence to the first depends on the second. In other words, if Evangelicals want to change the culture they are far more effective changing hearts than laws.
My views of God and the political process began to change as I sought for opportunities to offer positive value to both the American culture and the Evangelical subculture. Now, instead of yelling and arguing about which laws to pass, I sought heart-level connections with people.
If you have been paying attention you will know where this is going. Halfway There tries to be that kind of positive voice that lets you into the real experience of becoming a Christian and learning to live life with God. It seeks to change our character into more trusting and faithful followers by sharing when God was faithful to others. It is about the experience not the theological category. And, yes, that’s the agenda I have in every interview which I’m sure longtime listeners perceive.
Confession over.
I tell this story not to distract from Keith’s story but to let you know that if our conversation about separating church and state is challenging for you, I understand why. That was me just a few years ago. But it also comes with an invitation to listen, consider what he says, and decide for yourself.
I highly recommend Jesus Untangled by Keith Giles (Amazon affiliate link which means if you buy from this link Amazon sends a little my way) as a starting point for the conversation about
Great quotes from our conversation:
We are constantly being asked if we are going be disciples or not.
Whether you ordain me or not I’m going to live for Jesus. I’m going to follow him.
I want a tattoo or t-shirt that says “Death to the status quo!”
The average Christian has more power to change the world than the president of the United States of America.
We’re not doing nothing. We’re setting of nuclear bombs in the spiritual world.
Also mentioned was
Renewing the Christian Mind: Essays, Interviews, and Talks in which Keith interview Dallas Willard and
A Free People’s Suicide: Sustainable Freedom and the American Future which is mentioned above
The Power of Weakness also by Keith Giles elaborates on how God uses weakness
Did you relate to Keith's story? Be sure to pick up Jesus Untangled for more. And tell someone you know who would enjoy Halfway There about the show. It's the highest compliment you can give.
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034: Quentin Banks is Free in Christ Forever

Quentin Banks met Jesus in the St. Louis County jail. That’s just the beginning of his story. He is one of my favorite people ever to share on Halfway There because of the powerful work God has done in his life. Quentin is the definition of a man seeking after God’s heart while still wrestling with a world that is far from His ideal. The stories he shares about how he comes to trust God will encourage you, too.
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033: Trust in God is Learned (Sometimes the Hard Way)

What have I learned after asking over 25 people about their life with God? Trust in God is learned sometimes the hard way.
Today we look at how this experience of learning to trust God over a long period of time is common, even in Scripture. I show through the Abraham’s story that he learned to believe God through the ups and downs of his own life so that by the time God asks Abraham to sacrifice Isaac in Genesis 22 he just does it.
The following stories are featured in clips from today’s show:
Amy Patton shares how she grew in faith and finally trusted God with more than her eternal destination but her whole life at a funeral.
Sue Muckley shared a time when she did not trust God, the effect that had on her heart, and how God brought her back.
Iain Bradbeer shared a story about how God broke his theology and the amazing prayer he prayed to ask God for more of himself.
What was true for Abraham all those years ago is true for you and I, my friends. Trust in God isn’t experienced once. Trust in God is learned by experience over our lifetimes.
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