WEBVTT

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Have you ever found yourself going to church, maybe you're really involved, but that deep

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sense of connection, actually feeling God's presence, it just seems, I don't know, missing.

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Or maybe you felt that pressure, those unspoken rules, like you're never quite measuring up,

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or worse, felt judged in a place that's supposed to be about grace.

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Yeah, that feeling.

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It's really common, unfortunately, that gap between doing religious things and actually

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feeling spiritually full.

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Exactly.

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If your experience with organized religion has left you feeling a bit empty, maybe even

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confused, then this deep dive is definitely for you.

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It really points to a core tension, doesn't it?

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The difference between the structure and the substance.

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Right.

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Welcome to the deep dive.

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We take the sources and research you provide, pull out the key insights, and basically give

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you a shortcut to understanding some pretty complex stuff.

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And today we're diving out of religion and into relationship, connecting with God beyond

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the church walls.

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Yes, exactly.

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Connecting with God beyond the church walls by Xavier Lamont.

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Our mission here is to unpack the book's main idea.

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The difference it draws between, well, institutional religion and having a real direct personal

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relationship with God.

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We'll use the book's own points and stories.

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Right.

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Digging into what that immediate connection looks like, the church's intended role versus

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maybe some pitfalls and how to actually foster a more intimate faith.

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Okay.

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So the book starts right at the beginning, doesn't it?

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Yeah.

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Looking at that original design, the Garden of Eden situation, what was that relationship

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like?

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Well, the picture painted is one of just like seamless intimacy.

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Genesis talks about God walking with Adam and Eve, talking with them.

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Wow.

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They were made in his image, had his spirit.

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It wasn't just existing nearby, it was direct fellowship.

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No need for priests or rituals, just connection.

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Direct access.

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And then sin happens.

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The book says this wasn't just about breaking a rule, but something deep.

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Absolutely.

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It frames sin as fundamentally breaking that connection.

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The immediate result, the shame, the hiding, they showed just how deep that fracture went.

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From walking with God to hiding from him?

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Yeah.

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That's huge.

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It is.

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A complete shift in the dynamic.

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But even then, right in that moment, the book points out there was already a hint of restoration.

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Yes.

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That promise in Genesis 3 with the proto-evangelium, it's like hope woven into the consequence.

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And then the book contrasts that old covenant way, the laws, the sacrifices, the intermediaries.

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All the things you had to do.

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Right.

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Contrast that with the new covenant Jesus brought, which is all about, well, you mentioned

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direct access again.

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Like it says in Hebrews, bold access through Jesus and the Holy Spirit working in us.

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So it's more than just forgiveness, it's reconnection.

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Exactly.

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The book really emphasizes that salvation isn't the finish line.

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It's the starting point for this ongoing transformation guided by the Holy Spirit.

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It's about cultivating that restored relationship.

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Okay.

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So that's the ideal, the original design.

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But then the book shifts to why for so many people today, church feels more like a source

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of frustration, not fulfillment.

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Taps right into that feeling we started with.

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And this is a really key part of the argument.

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It even mentions data, like the drop in church membership.

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Right.

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I saw that Gallup poll reference.

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Big draw.

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Yeah.

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Interestingly, many who stopped going to church still call themselves Christian.

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So there's a disconnect there, isn't there?

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Identifying with faith, but not the institution.

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What's going on?

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And it gives those examples, Sheila, Karen, and Thomas, to make it real.

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Were there stories again?

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Sheila felt the rituals were just mechanical, no real heart connection.

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Karen was in a big church, but felt totally alone, missing real community.

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And Thomas, he just couldn't connect the Sunday teachings to his Monday life, you know?

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Felt irrelevant.

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And these aren't just random stories.

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They represent common struggles.

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Because the argument is that the structure, the church practices, they can provide a framework,

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but sometimes they end up obscuring the main goal, that personal relationship, like focusing

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on the rules of the road instead of the destination.

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That's a good way to put it.

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When doing church becomes more important than being in relationship with God, that's when

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the disillusionment can creep in.

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The form takes over the substance.

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Which naturally leads to, how did we get here?

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How did this institutional structure even come about?

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Lamont really emphasizes the early movement, the way, the ecclesia, and how it shifted.

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What were the key moments?

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It's fascinating, really.

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The book highlights how certain early Christian leaders started shaping things in a more hierarchical

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way.

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Clement of Rome, for example.

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Okay, what did he emphasize?

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Order, obedience to leaders.

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He even compared church leadership to the Old Testament priesthood, creating this early

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sense of clergy being distinct from, well, everyone else, the laity.

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Interesting.

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So separating the professionals from the regulars almost.

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In a sense, yeah.

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Then you have Ignatius of Antioch.

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He really upped the authority of the bishops.

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How so?

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He basically said you needed the bishops okay.

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and for church activities to be legitimate, that really centralized power.

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Right. And Irenaeus, he's a big name.

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Irenaeus focused on apostolic succession, this idea that bishops got their authority

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directly from the apostles, which again, bolstered the clergy's role and kind of sidelined the

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average member.

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Brancher Dillion.

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He also pushed that clergility divide and was big on stripped moral and doctrinal standards

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often enforced by the leadership. You see a pattern emerging.

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Definitely sounds like it. Control and structure.

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And then Cyprian of Carthage comes along with that really famous line, you can't have God

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as your father if you don't have the church as your mother.

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Wow. Linking salvation itself to the institution.

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Pretty much. It solidified the church's authority in a huge way.

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And finally, Augustine.

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Augustine was pivotal in merging church and state power. He argued for using political

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force to ensure everyone followed the correct Christian beliefs. That really changed the

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game.

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So looking at all these figures, you can trace how that early, maybe more fluid, spirit-led

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movement gradually became the structured hierarchical Roman Catholic Church we recognize, focused

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on control, conformity, ritual, quite a journey from the garden.

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Exactly. Lamont points this out, not necessarily to bash history, but to understand how the

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focus might have shifted from that direct personal relationship to institutional loyalty.

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OK, so with that historical backdrop, the book then really focuses on what it means

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to move beyond just the religious practices and into that authentic relationship.

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How does it define religion here?

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It frames religion as basically our human attempts to reach God using our own systems,

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rules, rituals, structures we create.

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Man reaching up.

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Right. Versus God reaching down, offering a relationship freely.

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And it talks about institutional Christianity versus religiosity. What's the difference

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there?

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Think of institutional Christianity as the framework, the organization. Religiosity of

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the book uses it is when you become more devoted to that framework, the rules, the traditions,

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the building, than to God himself.

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Ah, so loving the system more than the person it points to.

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Precisely. It's about prioritizing the doing of religion over the being in relationship.

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And the book insists God isn't primarily after just change behavior, is he?

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No, not just outward conformity. The core aim is that inner transformation driven by

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the Holy Spirit, a changed heart, a renewed mind that then naturally leads to different

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actions. It's inside out work.

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Because Jesus didn't come to give us a new religion, a better set of rules.

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Exactly. He offered himself. He is the way back to that direct access. And Lamont uses

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the image of the temple curtain tearing when Jesus died.

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Right. Symbolizing the end of the old system.

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No more barriers. Open access for everyone through faith in him.

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And it's not about us trying harder and harder to be good enough.

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Not at all. Getting right with God, according to the book, isn't our achievement. It's the

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Holy Spirit working in us, producing his fruit, love, joy, peace, patience, all that stuff.

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It's grace, not grinding.

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Which brings us squarely to the Holy Spirit. The book seems to position the Spirit as absolutely

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crucial for this shift into relationship.

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It's presented as the linchpin, really, the very presence of God living inside believers.

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This kind of direct relationship the book talks about, it's impossible without the Spirit.

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And the Spirit is key to understanding scripture, too, not just reading words on a page.

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Yes. And Lamont says the Spirit illuminates the word, makes it living, relevant, gives

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personal guidance. It's how biblical truth connects to your actual life today.

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Because just intellectually knowing about God isn't the same as knowing God.

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The book stresses that the deep truths, the mysteries of God, aren't figured out just

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with our brains. They're revealed by the Spirit. It quotes 1 Corinthians, you need the Spirit

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to discern spiritual reality.

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And what about that old wineskins metaphor? How does that fit in?

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The old wineskins represent those rigid structures, the fixed ways of doing church, the traditional

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mindsets that maybe can't handle the new dynamic relational work the Spirit wants to do.

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So sometimes our structures can actually get in the way.

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That's the implication. They might not be flexible enough for the new wine of the Spirit's

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present activity.

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So real spiritual growth isn't about fitting into a mold, but about surrendering.

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Surrendering to the Spirit's work inside you, letting Him lead the transformation.

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Okay, it makes sense. So how do we actually do this? How do we cultivate this direct conversation?

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The book gives that practical God Talks framework. Can you break that down?

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Sure. It's a three-step thing. Step one is prepare your mind, basically quieting the

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internal noise.

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The mental chatter. Yeah, I know that well.

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We all do. So it suggests focused breathing, intentional prayer, just creating that quiet

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space to listen.

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Okay, step one. Quiet down. Step two.

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Ask God two questions. And these are specific questions designed to uncover maybe hidden

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negative beliefs we're holding onto.

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and to open us up to hear God's perspective, his truth.

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Uncovering beliefs, interesting.

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And step three.

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Recode your mind with two statements.

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This is where you actively replace the lies

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you identified with God's truth.

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You literally say, I let go of the lie that whatever it is,

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and I receive the truth that, stating God's reality.

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So consciously choosing truth over the old lies.

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Exactly.

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It's about intentionally reprogramming

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your inner narrative.

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The book also mentions different parts

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of the mind, conscious, subconscious, superconscious,

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or spirit.

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How does that tie in?

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Right.

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It suggests our spirit, the superconscious,

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is where we connect directly with God's spirit,

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like Romans 8 says.

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The subconscious, well, that's like the hard drive,

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storing all our beliefs, good and bad.

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And those negative contracts it talks about.

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Are those the bad beliefs stored there?

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That's the idea.

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Lies we've agreed with, often unconsciously

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about ourselves, God, the world, maybe from childhood,

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bad experiences, they sit in the subconscious

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and shape how we feel and react.

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And they can block that connection with God,

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presumably.

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They definitely can.

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So the God Talks process, especially step three,

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is about replacing those negative contracts

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with positive contracts, God's actual truth

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through repeatedly affirming and meditating on them.

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And our words matter in this.

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Hugely.

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The book quotes Proverbs about the power of the tongue.

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What we consistently say reinforces our beliefs,

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shapes our reality.

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So speaking God's truth out loud is powerful.

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This is practical.

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Something really important the book addresses is pain,

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specifically church hurt.

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It really validates that experience.

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Yes, and that's crucial.

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Lamont acknowledges that churches, being full of humans,

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can unfortunately be places where deep wounds happen.

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Misplaced trust, bad leadership, legalism, cliques.

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All that stuff.

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Yeah.

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The book affirms that if you've been

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hurt in that environment, your pain is real

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and needs attention.

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And the solution isn't necessarily

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just finding a better institution,

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but re-centering on God himself.

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Exactly.

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Realigning your faith with God, letting the Holy Spirit

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be your ultimate guide, rather than putting all your trust

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in any human structure or leader.

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What are the common sources of that hurt it identifies?

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You mentioned a few.

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It lists things like misplaced trust in the institution

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itself, forgetting it's fallible, toxic leadership,

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leaders who control instead of serve,

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legalism, where rules become more

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important than relationship, that whole performance trap,

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and just a lack of genuine deep community

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feeling lonely in the crowd.

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So how does it suggest people heal from that?

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There were five steps.

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Yes.

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First, acknowledge the pain.

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Don't minimize it.

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Second, forgive those who hurt you, which is often hard,

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but vital for freedom.

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Third, realign your faith.

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Put God back at the center, not the institution

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or the experience.

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Fourth, seek the Holy Spirit's guiding specifically

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for healing.

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And fifth, intentionally cultivate

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that direct relationship with God we've been talking about.

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It really keeps coming back to that core relationship,

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doesn't it?

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Your faith is defined by God's love and his spirit in you,

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not by flawed people or past hurts.

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That's the essence of the healing path it lays out,

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redirecting your focus to the source.

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OK, lastly, the book looks at reimagining

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spiritual community.

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Like it says in Hebrews, don't stop meeting together.

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But maybe it doesn't always look like traditional church.

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Right.

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It suggests community can happen in many forms, home churches,

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small groups, online connections maybe.

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The key is genuine relationship and seeking God together,

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not necessarily the building or the program.

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It also makes a distinction I thought was interesting,

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spirit-filled versus spirit-led churches.

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What's the difference there?

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The book suggests spirit-filled might focus more

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on the outward gifts or manifestations of the spirit.

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Spirit-led, however, emphasizes leaders and the community

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actively listening for and following

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the spirit's guidance in decisions, direction,

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everyday life.

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It's about yieldedness.

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I see.

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More about following guidance than just having experiences.

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That seems to be the distinction, yeah.

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And it broadens the idea of worship, too.

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I hope so.

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It points to John 4, worship in spirit and truth.

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It's about your heart's posture, your whole life

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becoming an offering, not just what happens during a song

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service on Sunday.

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A lifestyle, not just an event.

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Exactly.

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And it brings back that idea of the ecclesia,

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called out ones, as ideally being

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the spirit-led, relational, purpose-driven community.

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OK.

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So wrapping up this deep dive, the big takeaway

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from these excerpts really seems to be this.

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You were fundamentally designed for intimacy with a God.

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That longing you might feel for something deeper, it's real,

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it's valid.

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Absolutely.

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This whole exploration was about peeling back the layers,

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getting past potentially hindering religious structures

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to rediscover faith in that raw, direct, spirit-led way.

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And the message is ultimately hopeful, isn't it?

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God's love is constant.

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He meets you right where you are,

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regardless of past church experiences or feelings

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of inadequacy.

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Yes.

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The final encouragement bits really underline that.

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Your faith is in God, not institutions.

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Your past doesn't define you.

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The spirit is your guide.

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Community is about real connection.

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It's quite freeing, actually.

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It is.

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So maybe a final thought to leave you with.

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What could your life look like?

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What might change if you fully leaned into this direct relationship with God?

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If you really let go of any religious boxes that might be holding you back?

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Something to really mull over.

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Definitely.

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The possibilities that open up when the relationship is the primary focus.

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It's a powerful question to consider.

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And it all starts with asking ourselves that honest question.

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The one that Lamont leaves us with.

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Is the Holy Spirit truly guiding my life?

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Yeah.

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Or am I relying on religion to do what only God can do?

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That's the question.

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That is a powerful question.

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What a life-changing question.

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It is.

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Wow.

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This has been an incredible deep dive into some really challenging but encouraging ideas.

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It really has.

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And we want to encourage you to check out Xavier Lamont's book when it's released to

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continue this journey of discovery and transformation.

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It's an adventure.

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It is.

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Until next time.

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See you then.

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You've been told what to think about God, but have you been shown how to connect with

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him?

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For too long, faith has been reduced to rules, rituals, and routines.

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But that's not what God wants.

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He wants you in a direct relationship with him one-on-one.

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In my new audio book, Out of Religion and Into Relationship, Connecting with God Beyond

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00:16:27.320 --> 00:16:32.120
the Church Walls, I'll show you how to ditch the performance mindset and hear from God

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for yourself.

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Click on the link below and listen to the first six chapters completely free.

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See what you think.

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Go there now and start your journey out of religion and into relationship.