Become Good Soil

We all hunger and thirst for the love, validation, and intentionality of a man stronger than us. 

The post 158: The Metanarrative of Masculine Love (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

When the son is ready, the Father appears. 

The post 157: From Success to Failure to Sonship appeared first on Become Good Soil.

"You are all one in Christ Jesus."

The post 156: The Metanarrative of Feminine Love, with Cherie Snyder (Part 3) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The Living God is relentlessly and lovingly pursuing us in and through the feminine.

The post 155: The Metanarrative of Feminine Love, with Cherie Snyder (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The integration of redeemed femininity and masculinity is essential to the path to human flourishing.

The post 154: The Metanarrative of Feminine Love, with Cherie Snyder (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if losing the track is an essential part of engaging in God’s initiation of our souls? 

The post 153: The Lion Tracker’s Guide to Life (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Too much uncertainty is chaos. But too little is death.

The post 152: The Lion Tracker’s Guide to Life (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Together, we will look back to look forward.

The post 151: A Soul’s Review appeared first on Become Good Soil.

God has the first word. And God has the last word. This is good news.

The post 150: A Christmas Feast (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Let's remember the beauty, cost, and largeness of the Tale that has woven our ordinary lives into its surprise, delight, and power.

The post 149: A Christmas Feast (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What story are we inviting our kids into?

The post 148: DadAwesome, with Jeff Zaugg (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

If I can only lead my child where I’ve gone myself, what’s next in my initiation?

The post 147: DadAwesome, with Jeff Zaugg (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In the Kingdom of God, we are never behind, and it is never too late.

The post 146: Wild Courage, with Jeremy Morris appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Salvation is a process, not an event. – Resilient Friends, Steady. Strong. ​​​Resilient.  What would it be like for these words to describe the sons of God in this hour on earth?  It’s hopeful.  It’s powerful. And, brothers, it’s available.  John’s most recent work, Resilient, is a life raft amidst our contemporary turbulent sea. Singularity of heart is...

The post 145: Resilient, with John Eldredge appeared first on Become Good Soil.

As we see how Jesus engages men and women, we discover his brotherly love, care, and invitation. 

The post 144: Jesus, Our Older Brother (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Jesus became a brother to mankind so we might more fully come home to the Family of God.

The post 143: Jesus, Our Older Brother (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Let's rediscover the innocence and hope of asking questions.

The post 142: Rise, with Rob Porter (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It’s not up to me. I am being led by a good Father brilliantly orchestrating my masculine initiation. What would it be like for that to be true?

The post 141: Rise, with Rob Porter (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Not only is Winn a man through whom God is bringing the life and legacy of Eugene Peterson, he has his own rich life and legacy.

The post 140: Eugene Peterson, with Winn Collier (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

No description of Eugene Peterson rings more true than this one: he beheld the Presence of God.

The post 139: Eugene Peterson, with Winn Collier (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Cherie Snyder offers what she has lived and who she has become through 25 years of discipleship to Jesus.

The post 138: The Cost of Non-Discipleship, with Cherie Snyder appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Thirty local Fires have been launched, and more are being lit. They all start with one man and one match.

The post 137: Fires, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Wild at Heart Fires offer a context for the authentic masculine community essential for our hearts to thrive. 

The post 136: Fires, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

A decade of small and hidden choices has led to a life to really celebrate. Join Morgan and Aaron for this declaration of hope.

The post 135: Mastering the Art of Living, with Aaron McHugh appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We return to the big ideas of parts work in a fresh session where Cherie and Morgan taught as a team.

The post 134: Parts Work, Part 6 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

A trusted guide offers a personal experience of care for the fragmented parts of your soul. 

The post 133: Parts Work, Part 5 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Some have become disintegrated and marred, but there are no bad parts of our hearts as men and women made in the image of God.

The post 132: Parts Work, Part 4 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It is the wholehearted soul who is truly free and able to let God be the center of his story.

The post 131: Parts Work, Part 3 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

A few BGS Intensive alumni give us an in-depth look at parts work in the intersection of our daily lives. 

The post 130: Parts Work, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

How do we participate in a process through which every disintegrated and fractured part can be brought back into alignment and connection with God?

The post 129: Parts Work, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Let God use Jared’s story to shine a light into your heart as you attune to who God wants to be for you and what he is calling you into.

The post 128: The Salt Life, with Jared Sayers appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The Becoming a King Retreat is an invitation back onto the narrow path that leads to life.

The post 127: Stories from the Frontlines, Part 3 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We hear another fresh batch of stories from the frontlines of the Becoming a King Retreat.  

The post 126: Stories from the Frontlines, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Few things will facilitate our masculine initiation more deeply than offering strength, love, and service on behalf of other men.

The post 125: Stories from the Frontlines, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Pause with God to review this past year, uncovering its treasures and clarifying insights for the journey ahead.

The post 124: A Soul’s Review appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Take up a childlike heart again this Christmas and be swept up into the awe and beauty of Immanuel—God with us. 

The post 123: The Carpenter’s Gift appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In our masculine initiation, it is often through the megaphone of pain that God rouses parts of us long dormant. 

The post 122: But It’s Worth It (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In time and over time, we're invited to follow the path and process of Jesus, passing through death into more and more life.

The post 121: But It’s Worth It (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We can choose to be with God rather than try to impress him. We can experience friendship with God that far outweighs the fleeting nature of our talents.

The post 120: Land I’m Livin’ In (Part 4) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Over a lifetime of maturing, we are intended to become the children, the friends, and, finally, the lovers of God.

The post 119: Land I’m Livin’ In (Part 3) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Join us as we weave together story and song to shepherd our hearts ever deeper into the hope and heart of a God unbound by death. 

The post 118: Land I’m Livin’ In (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The one who knows us best is the one who loves us most. 

The post 117: Land I’m Livin’ In (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Our stories do not define us; the Author of them does. 

The post 116: Love Wins, with Tommy Colwell (Part 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There is perhaps no promise greater than the bottom-line reality that God's love gets the last word. And all will be made new in the light of this love.

The post 115: Love Wins, with Tommy Colwell (Part 1) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Your heart's healing is not about you, nor is it primarily for you. It’s primarily for others. 

The post 114: A Consecrated Life – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 8 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We will have life and have it to the full only if and when we are willing to die. 

The post 113: Doing the Tiger – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 7 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

I’m sorry. I was wrong. Will you forgive me? 
These three phrases can transform every relationship. 

The post 112: Taking Care of My Side of the Street – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 6 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Wholehearted living is no longer a choice—we must cultivate daily habits that root us in the life and presence of God.

The post 111: Men Without Chests – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 5 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Where do you feel uncomfortable? When do you feel weak? In what ways do you feel uninitiated? Where is God asking you to risk? 

The post 110: Twenty Seconds of Insane Courage – 2019 Intensive, Part 4 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What has been your experience of being loved without condition by someone who had robust well-being to share? 

The post 109: Robust Well-Being – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 3 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We uncover what needs to die in us in order that we might really live, becoming men who have nothing to hide, nothing to fear, and nothing to prove.

The post 108: Restoring the True Man – 2019 BGS Intensive, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Over 20 years ago, I found myself navigating a man’s world but largely feeling like a boy. Balancing a young marriage, young children, and a young career had punted me into the deep end.

The post 107: Entrusted with Power – 2019 BGS Intensive Series, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The cure for our waywardness and nagging discontent is to come home to receive the overflowing love, attention, and care of God. 

The post 106: Coming Home, Part 3 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if coming home to a new and secure attachment to God is the primary definition of salvation? 

The post 105: Coming Home, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What is in the way of growing your attachment to God as your source of pleasure, joy, and comfort?

The post 104: Coming Home, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There simply is no distinction between sacred and unsacred work in the world. 

The post 103: Work: Repairing the Sacred Secular Divide appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if, even in the midst of bewildering pain and disappointment, we are actually being led by our Father?

The post 102: I Am Being Led appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There is nothing more clarifying than proximity to birth and death and the invitation these twin experiences provide to consider what we most deeply want.

The post 101: From Life to Life, with Bill Lokey appeared first on Become Good Soil.

To mark this sacred milestone of 100 episodes, it is my deep joy to celebrate your stories!

The post 100: Your Stories appeared first on Become Good Soil.

How have you responded to the reality that sometimes your very best strength is not enough to achieve the outcome you long for?

The post 099: I Was Sure, with Adam Paulson appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What was going on in the heart and soul of Joseph that caused him to risk everything on God?

The post 098: Joseph appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if there was an ancient path that led to life as it was meant to be?

The post 097: The Becoming a King Experience appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Reckoning with our unconscious biases is a form of initiation that will help us increasingly see more of how God sees.

The post 096: What’s Your Bias? appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Advent is yet another powerful context for our masculine initiation, an opportunity to relinquish our inferior self-will in order to joyfully receive more of our King and his Life.

The post 095: Advent, with Simon Kyne appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if you were to turn with an open heart and a beginner's mind toward the Bible for a fresh revelatory quest?

The post 094: Through the Bible, Part 3 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There is a narrow road to know the Scriptures—and the God who wrote them—with more of ourselves, more deeply.

The post 093: Through the Bible, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What do we do with this collection of ancient texts? What if a community could engage our questions and face the strangeness of the Bible with us?

The post 092: Through the Bible, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Sam Jolman has become a craftsman in the restoration of the masculine soul. In this episode we each get a seat in his counseling office to dive together into the masculine journey.

The post 091: Soulcraft, with Sam Jolman appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Join Christopher and me as we unpack the mystery and wonder of original design and the compelling intersection of body, soul, and the life of God.

The post 090: Theology of the Body, with Christopher West appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The relentless mission of Jesus is to heal and restore every aspect of our personhood. To rebuild what has been devastated.

The post 089: The Wild at Heart Experience appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if maturity looks like blurring the lines between vocation and family? What if you could come home? And what if it changed everything?

The post 088: Blurring the Lines of Vocation and Family appeared first on Become Good Soil.

A modern-day parable, The Company Men depicts one man’s masculine initiation. As usual, the process begins with a man at the end of his rope. 

The post 087: The Company Men appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What if pursuing and cultivating wholehearted relationships with those under our care is a holy invitation back into the garden of simplicity with God? 

The post 086: Back to the Garden appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The Father is a wild one, undivided in his commitment to meet us where we are and father every uninitiated place in us. 

The post 085: Defending the Defenseless appeared first on Become Good Soil.

May the words of these men who are risking it all on God and his Kingdom strengthen you and fuel you for what’s ahead.

The post 084: Becoming a King Campfire, Part 2 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Over the past year I’ve had the honor to share campfires with allies to connect and hear stories of the men bravely working through Becoming a King.

The post 083: Becoming a King Campfire, Part 1 appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Slow down and receive with me the treasure of an intimate conversation with a man to whom God has entrusted much of his Kingdom.

The post 082: Unbridled Optimism, with Peb Jackson appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Trusting Jesus’ leadership, let’s explore how we can regularly receive feminine love and maternal care from the heart of God.

The post 081: Maternal Deprivation appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Here is the good news: our medicators and their grip are not the truest thing about us.

The post 080: Slow Is Pro appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Often at first pass we see things not as they truly are, but only as we are. However, if we are willing, our distorted vision need not be the final verdict.

The post 079: A New Dawn Is Rising appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Over two decades ago through his book Wild at Heart, John Eldredge offered men the central thing they were missing: permission.

The post 078: Wild at Heart appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Masculine initiation has as much to do with unlearning as it does with learning. As much to do with powerlessness as it does with power.

The post 077: Initiation, with Nick Carlile appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Liturgy was intended to be a grace and essential stream to draw near to God and access the full breadth and depth of his Kingdom.

The post 076: Lent & Liturgy appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What is the path of inner transformation and becoming like Christ? Is such transformation even possible? Dallas Willard assures us it is readily available. 

The post 075: Vision, Intention, and Means appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Experiential therapy has been a profound conduit of the River of Life for me and for many; it is one of the great modalities of therapy and healing to consider in our toolbox for the restoration of the masculine soul. 

The post 074: Experiential Therapy with Bill Lokey appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We turn to part two of a conversation Cherie and I hosted with our mentor, counselor, and dear friend, Gary Unruh.

The post 073: Gary Unruh – Counselor and Restorer of Families (Part 2 of 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

May the action of our Coming King in you and through you refresh your heart and enliven your hope as you prepare and anticipate his Coming Again.

The post 072: Zechariah appeared first on Become Good Soil.

After being Gary's counseling clients for years, Cherie and I had a chance to host him on the Become Good Soil podcast.

The post 071: Gary Unruh – Counselor and Restorer of Families (Part 1 of 2) appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It’s my joy to lean into the years of trauma-informed story work that my wife, Cherie, has explored for two decades. May this conversation be one more step for all of us toward the wholeness that Jesus offers in the marvel and promise of our embodied life.

The post 070: The Body Keeps the Score, with Cherie Snyder [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It’s my joy to invite you into part two of the Become Good Soil podcast series on The Inquisitive Christ with our winsome, American-born, Irish-bred lady of the questions, Cara Murphy.

The post 069: The Inquisitive Christ – Part 2 of 2 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Cara Murphy is a woman of questions. It’s my joy to explore her book, The Inquisitive Christ, together and recover some of the central questions that are needed in this hour on the earth.

The post 068: The Inquisitive Christ – Part 1 of 2 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It’s my joy and privilege to invite you into this soul-strengthening conversation with a fellow Kingdom apprentice.

The post 067: Pathfinder – A Conversation with Zach Thomas [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

"We must empty ourselves of that with which we are full so that we might fill ourselves with that of which we are empty." –St. Augustine

The post 066: Arranging Our Days – An Intimate Conversation from the 2019 Become Good Soil Intensive [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

I asked three courageous women, "What is the fruit of the Become Good Soil message in your husband's life?" My desire is that this conversation will strengthen your hope for the transformation that is available. 

The post 065: Heroic Stories Series – Wives of the Become Good Soil Intensive Fellowship [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There are practices in our power to do that accomplish in us what we never could on our own—small, consistent, but heroic acts that integrate our fractured souls and reconnect us supernaturally with our God.

The post 064: Cultivating a Habitat for the Soul [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The privilege of engaging with Nancy and the Isle of Misfits was catalytic in my own relationship with God. In the hope of passing on what I recieved, I wanted to bring this episode to Become Good Soil for our mutual strengthening. 

The post 063: Isle of Misfits [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

If acute anxiety has been a part of your story or the story of someone you love, there is reliable hope for encounter, comfort, and transformation.

The post 062: Anxiety to Peace [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

How do I find a mentor? What do I do with my disappointment in older men? How do I offer guidance, counsel, or simply more to younger men in my world?  

The post 061: In Search of a Father [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

No one stops to think. These five words, spoken over two thousand years ago, have the potential to change your life more than any others. 

The post 060: What if Margin Could Save the World? [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Over two decades ago I set out on a relentless quest to find the answer. What I found was not what I expected, and where I found it was in the most unanticipated places. With it came a restored strength and an unshakable hope.

The post 059: Becoming a King [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Seventy-two years ago, a novel threat emerged on the earth, inciting a proportionate pandemic of fear around the globe. In that hour, it was the advent of the atomic bomb, a weapon whose potential for immediate and global destruction was unprecedented.

The post 058: Locking Shields [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The owner of the company maintained his poker face; it was not simply for the card game. This was the face he now donned for every public moment in these dark days. He was in trouble, and under no circumstances would he let it show. The investments he had made in the good times were now worthless.

The post 057: Surviving Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why? [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Friends, it was Oswald Chambers who said, "We tend to use prayer as a last resort, but God wants it to be our first line of defense. We pray when there's nothing else we can do, but God wants us to pray before we do anything at all." This morning I was deeply moved in my own personal prayer time to contend...

The post 056: Strength in the Midst of the Storm – Prayer Response to Coronavirus [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Standing up and owning our reverberating pulses of passion rarely comes down to a singular event or momentary intersection with destiny. There is a daily-ness to our noble and sensible resignations. We dutifully go about our lives for years, decades even, and suddenly we look up to find ourselves with parts or whole swatches of our lives unlived...

The post 055: The Secret To Work You Love [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We celebrated the 50th Become Good Soil podcast by asking you like-hearted listeners around the globe to send in the questions coming up as you travel the narrow road. The response was far more than we anticipated, and so deeply encouraging. And included far too many to address in one podcast...

The post 054: Question Response, Volume 2 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It has been an incredible privilege to invite you into an intimate mentoring encounter with Chuck Bolton in this three-part Become Good Soil series. Among the many treasures in this final conversation, Chuck offered this gold: "I want to be authentic with everyone, transparent with fewer, and intimate even fewer...

The post 053: Heart Strong – A Conversation with Chuck Bolton (Part 3) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play in new window | Download Prison was so holy, because there was such a dependence on God. I had the gift of desperation. I couldn’t fix anything. I couldn’t do it. I had to lean into the Father. -Chuck Bolton One of the lenses I often use when I’m looking to recover the...

The post 052: Heart Strong – A Conversation with Chuck Bolton (Part 2) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play in new window | Download I’ve spent 15 months in federal prison, but I can say the loneliest, darkest prison I’ve ever been in was my addiction. It was because I was alone and because I was living in secrets. -Chuck Bolton Heart strong and soul safe. That’s what I think of when...

The post 051: Heart Strong – A Conversation with Chuck Bolton (Part 1) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The questions came pouring in. From near and far. They have been rich and meaningful. What I thought would be one podcast celebrating the 50th episode of Become Good Soil is sure to turn into an extended volume of conversations over time...

The post 050: Question Response, Volume 1 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It was 21 years ago, but I remember the interaction like it was yesterday. I was in the home of a mentor, and he and I were talking in the kitchen while two of his boys played in the adjoining room. A few minutes into our conversation, a conflict arose between the boys. And in the blink of an eye...

The post 049: Parenting and Styles of Relating appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Though it is rare, there are people who have built a strong inner character, who have achieved a certain depth. In these people, at the end of this struggle, the climb to success has surrendered to the struggle to deepen the soul. David Brooks, The Road to Character...

The post 048: Initiating Five Sons, with Paul Ryan [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In the mid-20th century, The Times in London ran an essay contest, inviting highly respected thinkers and leaders to respond to the question, “What’s wrong with the world?” Chesterton offered this as his full response: Dear Sirs, I am. Sincerely yours, G. K. Chesterton...

Chesterton was in contact with the reality of the masculine

The post 047: Intensive Series (Episode 8 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play in new window | Download For a human character to reveal truly exceptional qualities, one must have the good fortune to be able to observe its performance over many years. If this performance is devoid of all egoism, if its guiding motive is unparalleled generosity, if it is absolutely certain there is no thought...

The post 046: Intensive Series (Episode 7 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Join me for this sixth episode of an eight-part series where we are going behind the scenes into the most recent Become Good Soil Intensive. If you're joining us for the first time in this series, I would encourage you to begin with...

The post 045: Intensive Series (Episode 6 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

How are you arranging your days? Dallas suggest that there is a possibility and a promise that, in time and over time, we can indeed arrange our days so that we are "experiencing deep contentment, joy, and confidence in our everyday life with God."

The post 044: Intensive Series (Episode 5 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In Renovation of the Heart, Dallas says, "Our soul is like a stream of water, which gives strength, direction and harmony to every other area of our life. When the stream is as it should be, we are constantly refreshed and exuberant in all we do, because our soul itself...

The post 043: Intensive Series (Episode 4 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It's perhaps the second most dangerous and daring prayer we could ever pray. And it is one that can lead us into treasures beyond telling. Listen to this session from the most recent Become Good Soil Intensive about receiving God as Mother...

The post 042: Intensive Series (Episode 3 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What was it about Jesus that allowed him to become quite possibly the most relaxed and lovingly unpredictable person who ever lived? Join me as we explore part two of an eight-part series in which we're going behind the scenes into the most recent Become Good Soil Intensive.

The post 041: Intensive Series (Episode 2 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Many are saying that in the automobile industry, there has not been a revolution of this magnitude since Henry Ford inaugurated the assembly line for the Model T Ford on December 1, 1913. Yet as with every revolution and in every growing kingdom, there are hidden costs.

The post 040: Intensive Series (Episode 1 of 8) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In time it sometimes comes to pass that familiarity can give way to presumed familiarity. That presumed familiarity can then give way to unfamiliarity. And unfamiliarity can give way to boredom, obscurity, or even contempt. – Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy

The post 039: Contemplative Prayer – Episode 3 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What is it like to really know God? Not just know about God but to know him, thoroughly and comprehensively in the most essential places of our souls? What if there were a way to practice experiential knowledge of God? What if we could regularly encounter God on a level far deeper than creedal statements...

The post 038: Contemplative Prayer – Episode 2 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

I find it fascinating that when Jesus speaks of eternal life, it's less often about a specific time or place where we transition into some other state of being and more often about a quality of life—robust, deep vitality—that is being made available to us, right here and right now.

The post 037: Contemplative Prayer – Episode 1 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

"Did you bring me out here in the storm to kill me?" This pained and brutally honest prayer poured from Jonathan David Helser's heart in the midst of a moment of exposure and hand-to-hand battle with the living God. Jonathan explains...

The post 036: Jonathan David Helser – Episode 3 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Check out the news on any given day and you’ll find stories that illuminate a crisis of masculinity. It's a crisis rooted in the loss of effective masculine initiation, for a boy does not become a good man on his own, but by the soul-food of loving mothers and the soul-forging of loving fathers...

The post 035: Jonathan David Helser – Episode 2 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

"Messy could describe the first moment that God has with man. He gathers dirt in His hands to form Adam. There is dirt under God's fingernails and then on God’s lips as He draws Adam close to breathe in His Spirit. What is it like for Adam when he opens his eyes and sees and feels ...

The post 034: Jonathan David Helser – Episode 1 of 3 [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Amidst the clamor of contemporary life, there is the narrow path of slowing down and setting our souls before the insight of the elders. We can take heart: there are wise ones who have gone before us, men and women who have recovered the lost treasure of the Gospel ...

The post 033: The Slow and Steady with Dallas Willard and Michael Cusick [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Brad Beck has spent a lifetime offering strength in a myriad of roles in countless missions. As a flight surgeon in a supersonic jet for NASA, a crew member in international theater performance with YWAM, a physician in private practice, a coach of high school football...

The post 032: One Giant Leap for Mankind – A Conversation with Brad Beck [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Piecing together a string of single-track trails that meander through a dry, rocky, cactus-strewn landscape, it’s possible to make a 48-mile continuous trek across Zion National Park. For most people, this trek would be one of the epic adventures of their lives; if you’re Dave Eitemiller, you count it as a solid training workout for yet another 100-mile adventure race...

The post 031: 100 Miles with Dave Eitemiller [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Kelly and Phil are getting a divorce. The email from a mutual friend sharing the news hit me like a punch in the stomach. Brandon and his dad are in deep contention. It’s the kind of painful, two-sided misunderstanding that could finally sever the strained relationship...

The post 030: Coming to the Center (The Marriage Podcast Series – Part Four) [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The offer is Life. Yet that abundant life is often found in the least likely of places. What is the most effective path toward the much looked-for restoration in the heart of your spouse? Join Cherie and me in this second half of a conversation in which we reflect on the particular elements of Reality as Jesus reveals what can bring more life to our marriages than we ever thought possible...

Jesus, we choose to pause.

The post 029: Plank and Speck Wrap Up (The Marriage Series – Part Three) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Jesus and His words… are essentially subversive of the established arrangements and ways of thinking. That is clear from the way they first entered the world, their initial effects, and how they are preserved in the New Testament writings and live on in people...

The post 028: Plank and Speck (The Marriage Series – Part Two) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

If we are relational to our core, fashioned in the image of the One who is Three, then it is in dynamic relationship that we participate in the unending Life of God. And among human relationships, there is none more brimming with the loving potential to both expose our "not yet" and to beckon us forward than marriage...

The post 027: Venturing Toward the More (The Marriage Series – Part One) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

These words have become a mantra for my masculine soul. A sort of North Star as I attempt to orient and re-align my life with the Reality of God and His Kingdom. Allen Arnold and I had an opportunity to share some dialogue and prayer regarding how we're choosing to orient our souls at the beginning of this new year...

The post 026: I Love Beer More Than Jesus [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

This most recent episode was a treasure to record, featuring Esther Sparks, a Scottish poet and musician whose music has been uniquely sustaining to Cherie and me throughout this decade of excavation and becoming...

The post 025: Back To Life – Live with Esther Sparks [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It has been said, "The lives of many rest in the courage of a few." How are you becoming the kind of person to whom God can entrust the lives of others? How are you becoming the kind of person to whom God can entrust His Kingdom?

The post 024: Going Deep – An Invitation to Become Good Soil [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

In part two of the three part series, we venture behind the scenes into a sacred space where sages of the great nation of Australia offer their counsel at a Become Good Soil Intensive in New South Wales.  I want to invite you to savor some wisdom from the ancient path...

The post 023: Counsel from Kingdom Giants of Australia [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

What astonishes the heart of God? In part one of this three-part series, I want to invite you behind the scenes into a session at the heart of the most recent Become Good Soil Intensive in Colorado. We are now accepting applications for the upcoming Become Good Soil Intensives in both Colorado and Australia in May of 2017.  Find out more.

The post 022: What Astonishes the Heart of God? [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It was a shimmering rehearsal dinner, the headwaters of which were most certainly in Eternity. The choicest wine flowed, but even more, the choicest stories: stories of daring, risk, and deep redemption. Family and friends honored Abbey and Shaun with words of profound affection, honor for obstacles overcome, and the kind of faithful knowing and seeing that forms the texture of our deepest longings.

The post 021: You Are His Favorite [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Play in new window | Download   It all started with a lawnmower, a skateboard, a women’s clothing magazine, and a set of flip flops. What if play is God’s idea and is at the epicenter of Kingdom living? (A version of this podcast is also available in written form.)

The post 020: Did Jesus Wear Flip Flops? [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidentally found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field. -Matthew 13:44

The post 019: A Beautiful God [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

This episode of the Become Good Soil Podcast is a reflection I wrote after ongoing ventures in recent years through The Message paraphrase of Matthew 21:12-18, the passage commonly referred to as “The Clearing of the Temple.”

The post 018: Wild Unfettered and Free [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Eugene Petersen, author of The Message, makes this observation: The two most difficult things to get straight in life are love and God. More often than not the mess that we make of our lives can be traced to the failure in one or both of these areas. Sages have a capacity to see our lives illuminated with a glow that can only be appreciated through the view of many decades to come.

The post 017: Dismantling the Fig Leaf (Part Two of Two) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

I've lost the ability to bullshit. It's the me I've always wanted to be. It's one of my all-time favorite film quotes, spoken by Jerry Maguire as he sheds the Poser and becomes more and more the kind of man to whom God can entrust His kingdom. The film is a modern parable of a transformational process being made available to us every day.

The post 016: Dismantling the Fig Leaf (Part One of Two) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

We begin by taking a deeper look at how Jesus moves fluidly with both authority and love in all three styles of relating.

The post 015: Getting Naked – Styles of Relating (Part 2 of 2) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

How we relate with other people is one of the greatest indicators of our spiritual maturity. This was the counsel offered by an older, wiser man years ago as he helped untie the knots in my rope and my marriage. One tough conversation began the beautiful and life-changing process of understanding how...

The post 014: Getting Naked – Styles of Relating (Part 1 of 2) [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

"Deep calls unto deep..." the Scriptures suggest (Psalm 42:7). There is in every moment of every day an accessible onramp to the narrow road that leads to Life. Often the onramp is hidden in the ache and longing to ever more wholly experience life as a son.  And when we pause and let this ache rise...

The post 013: Quick [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

C.S. Lewis, in The Problem of Pain, once said this, What can be more a man’s own than this new name which even in eternity remains a secret between God and him? And what shall we take this secrecy to mean? Surely, that each of the redeemed shall forever know and praise...

The post 012: Your New Name [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

It is rare that we pause and pull back far enough from our daily life to observe and wonder about the who we have and have not yet become.  At Wild at Heart we produce a weekly podcast, and Craig and Allen recently invited me into the studio to reflect on how we've each changed over the last decade...

The post 011: Live in the Day and Measure in the Decade [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

The soul searches for a Father. It was John Ortberg who put those words to me in a way so succinct it cut to the core. I see it in nearly every action of every day. Every reaching. Every ache. Desire reveals design.  Design reveals destiny. It is the intention of the heart of our True Father that we would become sons...

That's why George MacDonald offers this invitation:

The post 010: Receiving the Heart of the Father – Cherie Snyder [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

For centuries, Celtic Christians have identified a "thin place" as a location where the veil between heaven and earth becomes especially sheer; a place where the unseen reality of God’s Kingdom is made vivid to the senses; a place where the Presence of God is unmistakable as it rouses the deepest spaces within the human heart...

The post 009: Nearing the End of My Beginning [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

There are few men I respect more than Dave Tolman. He is one of the giants who served as a sage and guide at the most recent Become Good Soil Intensive.  I had a rare chance to turn on the microphone and record a conversation with him that I think you'll enjoy.  Dave is a Kingdom strategist...

The post 008: A Conversation with my Aussie Hero, Dave Tolman [podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

A few thoughts on discipleship from Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard to begin: Who teaches you? Whose disciple are you? Honestly. One thing is sure: you are somebody’s disciple.  You are learning how to live from somebody else. There are no exceptions to this rule, for human beings are just the kind of creatures who have to learn and keep learning from others how to live...

The post 007: Responding to Divine Affection—A Conversation with Adam Paulson [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Nearly a decade ago, I had the privilege of seeking wisdom from Craig McConnell, a man who's seen many miles, fought many wars, and conquered death more times than I can recount. It was an even greater privilege to circle back with him on another conversation, this time recorded for the benefit of other men like you...

The post 006: Diving Deep – An Interview with Craig McConnell [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

An old, wise man, Jeremiah, suggested this: Go stand at the crossroads and look around. Ask for directions to the old road, The tried-and-true road. Then take it. Discover the right route for your souls. (Jeremiah 6)
There are few things in which I find more life than asking older men the hard and holy questions...

The post 005: (Video/Audio) Risking Love – An Interview with Bart Hansen [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

C.S. Lewis was right when he summed up the dilemma of modern masculinity: "We castrate the gelding and bid him be fruitful." It's painful.  And it's true. Become Good Soil is committed to helping men find an alternative path—a narrow road—that doesn't "remove the organ and demand the function."

The post 004: Hello, Trouble [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

To every relationship, to every circumstance, at every given moment, we are either bringing our question or our strength.  Our search for validation and identity as men is the root of all that we do and all that we become.  This was at the center of a great conversation I had with Allen Arnold, Director of Content...

The post 003: Your Question or Your Strength? [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Dan Allender makes this bold suggestion regarding peer friendship in this decade: Find like-hearted kings living in the same direction. Sign treaties.  When one kingdom is at war, both are at war.
Join me in a conversation with two "like-hearted kings" who have chosen to give a decade to Becoming Good Soil...

The post 002: Work.Life.Play [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.

Welcome to another Kingdom experiment.  This is the first episode of the Become Good Soil Podcast.  The BGS Podcast is a combination of interviews with sages, conversations among peers, teaching and more; all aimed at providing nourishment for men choosing a decade of Becoming Good Soil.

The post 001: An Invitation [Podcast] appeared first on Become Good Soil.