This is a very special episode, but a difficult one. Last episode, I opened up about the state of depression I've found myself in, and the different things we were doing to try and get me back on track. After much counseling, among other things that need to change, I learned that I needed to do some pruning in my life to help me better manage my time. So going forward, we will have some changes to this podcast - tune in the for the special announcement. Oh, and tune in the for our very first guest as well, none other than Dr. Kenny Embry of the Balancing the Christian Life podcast! This is one you really don't want to miss.
#SetYourMindAbovePodcast
Hey everybody, and welcome back to the Set Your Mind Above Podcast! I’m your host BJ Sipe – I’m a Christian, a preacher, a husband, and a father. In this podcast we take everyday, ordinary events and explore how they can teach us extraordinary, eternal truths. I’m so glad that you joined me for this episode. Now, let’s open up our minds, our hearts, and our Bible’s together.
Well, if you listened to yesterday’s podcast, you are aware that I have quite a few things I’m trying to figure out right now. I had somewhat of an intervention of sorts over the past few days. It started with several phone calls yesterday from some dear brothers in Christ here, as well as my father-in-law. Then last night we had a 4 hour sit down with our dear friends and mentors Jonathan & Christi Leber. They talked, prayed, and encouraged me and helped me work through how I got to the place that I have. This morning I had conversations with two of our elders in depth about the place that I am in, and some changes that I had planned on making going forward. Bottom line, I have been trying to do too much, and while I have not allowed my work to suffer as a result, I have been, and so has my family. I’ve not been the kind of husband or father that I need to be because of how stretched thin I have been. We have careful steps moving forward to address all the areas that have suffered: time at home, being pulled away from so many requests and obligations, my sleep schedule (or lack thereof), my diet, my commitments to the church, etc. While I don’t necessarily need to detail all of these things to you in today’s special announcement, there is one that will significantly impact this podcast that I needed to share with you.
I have loved this being a regular part of my schedule, but putting 4 episodes out a week is extraordinarily time consuming. I didn’t realize exactly how time consuming it was until I started keeping a log of how I spent my time. In fact, in the past we had originally done 5 a week, and then we changed it to 4. We are going to be making yet another change going forward. At least to start, the Set Your Mind Above Podcast is going to be moved to just one session a week. While this will be a big change from what we normally do here, it is not a departure from what most podcasters are capable of doing. If I had listened to the wisdom of my peers, I would have know from the beginning that perhaps I was being a little over ambitious to commit to such regular episodes on nearly a daily basis. Well, I understand now. Perhaps in the future we will be able to add another episode and we will have 2 a week, but for the time being we will revert to one episode every Tuesday until I can get things back on track in my life.
I want to thank all of you for your patience, understanding, and continued support as I work through these growing pains. We all have our unique struggles in our faith and in our day to day lives, that is certain. The biggest questions is how will we respond to those struggles and challenges? I am trying to do the hard things right now to right the ship that I’ve been driving into the ground. I want to ask you for your prayers as I navigate some other significant changes in my life, and I am sure that I will share some of these things and let you in on them in future episodes. I look forward to still sharing my life and my faith with you once a week, and exploring how everyday, ordinary events can teach us extraordinary, eternal truths. So, tune in each Tuesday for a new podcast episode.
For today, however, I have a very special surprise – and a first for this podcast. We are going to have a guest on the show, and it is none other than my very good friend and mentor Kenny Embry. Kenny is the host of the Balancing the Christian Life podcast, which I have referenced several times and had the blessing of being a guest on a few times as well. If you’re not already subscribed to his podcast, or signed up to be a part of his summer lectureship he is hosting, I would highly encourage you to do so. Not only is he a fellow podcaster, but he is a fellow listener. Recently, he reached out to me knowing that things have been in flux for our family after we took our last short break, and said he would be willing to record a few sessions for me to use in a pinch if I thought that was helpful. Well, after hearing yesterday’s podcast, he wasted no time in rushing to my side to support me how he could do so best. I think you’ll find his words very encouraging, and there is no one more fitting to be the first guest speaker on this podcast. So, without any further delay, let’s open up our minds, our hearts, and our Bible’s together as Dr. Kenny Embry helps us to set our minds above.