Mavericks & Misfits with Jeff Lyle on MOR Music Podcasts

April 15, 2025 Let This Rock You

Episode 239: Let This Rock YouAt the heart of our faith lies a profound truth that we often overlook: the incredible exchange that took place on the cross. 2 Corinthians 5:21 reveals this staggering reality - Christ, who knew no sin, became sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God. This isn't just theological jargon; it's a life-altering truth that should grip our hearts daily. Have we truly grasped the depths of Christ's sacrifice? The sinless One took on the full weight of our depravity, facing not just physical torment, but the spiritual agony of separation from the Father. In return, we receive His perfect righteousness. This undeserved grace should transform how we view ourselves, our struggles, and our purpose. Let's challenge ourselves to meditate on this truth, allowing it to strip away our self-centeredness and ignite a passion to live wholly for the One who gave everything for us.

April 8, 2025 Getting Fit & Going High

Episode 238: Getting Fit & Going HighAre we vessels of honor or dishonor in God's house? In this episode of the Mavericks & Misfits Podcast Jeff Lyle unpacks 2 Timothy 2 and challenges us to examine our spiritual lives. The Apostle Paul uses the metaphor of vessels in a home to represent believers in God's household. Some vessels are for honorable use, while others are for dishonorable purposes. This imagery prompts us to consider: what fills our hearts and lives? Are we allowing 'waste' to accumulate, or are we actively pursuing holiness? The call to 'cleanse ourselves from what is dishonorable isn't about perfection, but intentional and powerful spiritual growth. It's a reminder that spiritual maturity doesn't happen by accident – it requires our proactive cooperation with God's work in us. As we purify our hearts and minds, we become more useful to the Master, ready for every good work He has prepared for us. This message urges us to take our spiritual development seriously, recognizing that our choices and attitudes directly impact our effectiveness in God's Kingdom.

March 25, 2025 Flee, Follow & Fight

Episode 237: Flee, Follow & FightIn this episode of the Mavericks & Misfits Podcast, Jeff Lyle challenges us to examine our approach to faith and controversy within the Christian community. Drawing from 1 Timothy 6:11-12, we are given three crucial directives: Flee, Follow, and Fight. Scripture calls believers to flee from unhealthy controversy and pointless debates that often plague online Christian discourse. Instead, Jesus-followers are called to follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness. This pursuit of Christ-like character is presented as far more valuable than winning arguments. The final directive, to 'fight the good fight of faith,' reminds us that our true battle is not against fellow believers, but against spiritual forces of evil. This episode compels us to reflect on how we spend our time and energy as Christians. Are we building up the body of Christ or tearing it down through needless quarrels? It challenges us to prioritize spiritual growth, discipleship, and the advancement of God's kingdom over the temporary satisfaction of proving ourselves right in debates.

March 18, 2025 The Hour of Trouble & Trial

Episode 236: The Hour of Trouble & TrialIn our darkest hours, we often find the brightest opportunities for spiritual growth. This episode of the Mavericks & Misfits Podcast explores the Apostle Paul's imprisonment, as described in Philippians 1:12-18, revealing how even our most challenging trials can advance God's Kingdom. Paul's unwavering faith in the face of adversity teaches us that our struggles aren't just personal battles, but powerful platforms for God's glory. When we adopt a Kingdom perspective, we begin to see our trials not as setbacks, but as setups for God's greater purpose. This shift in mindset allows us to find joy amidst suffering, knowing that our endurance can inspire others and further the gospel. As we navigate our own valleys of trouble, let's remember that our response to hardship can be a powerful testimony, emboldening fellow believers and reaching those who might never hear the gospel otherwise.

March 11, 2025 Do We Submit to Human Authority?

Episode 235: Do We Submit to Human Authority?In a world that often rebels against authority, we're challenged to examine our own attitudes and behaviors. The truths from 1 Peter 2 remind us that submission to authority isn't just a suggestion - it's a biblical mandate. We are called to honor everyone, from government officials to workplace supervisors, even when we disagree with them. This isn't about blind obedience, but about trusting God's sovereignty in establishing authorities. The key is to maintain our integrity and do good, even when facing unjust treatment. By doing so, we silence critics and reflect Christ's character. This message invites us to shift our perspective: instead of focusing on the flaws of those in authority, we're encouraged to see submission as an opportunity to honor God and grow in our faith.

March 4, 2025 6 Marks of Genuine Salvation

Episode 234: 6 Marks of Genuine SalvationAre we truly saved? This profound question challenges us to examine our faith through six essential marks of genuine salvation found in the little book of 1st John. We are called to not just believe the truth, but to live it out daily. Our walk should reflect the light of Christ, not the darkness of the world. Obedience isn't just an option; it's a hallmark of authentic faith. The way we love others, especially fellow believers, speaks volumes about our relationship with God. As we grow in sanctification, our hearts should increasingly reject worldly values and embrace holiness. Perhaps most encouragingly, we are reminded in this episode of Mavericks & Misfits that true believers are overcomers - not immune to spiritual warfare, but victorious through enduring faith. This episode urges us to look beyond surface-level religiosity and dive deep into the transformative power of genuine salvation. Genuine salvation will evidence itself in genuine transformation.

February 25, 2025 What Unplugs Your Prayer Life

Episode 233: What Unplugs Your Prayer LifeToday’s episode of Mavericks & Misfits takes us into an exploration of prayer - we intentionally delve into the often-overlooked reasons why our prayers might go unanswered. Drawing from scriptures like Psalm 66:18 and Isaiah 59:2, we are reminded that sin and iniquity can create a barrier between us and God, hindering our prayers. This isn't about guilt, but about understanding the profound connection between our daily lives and our spiritual communion. We are challenged to examine our hearts, our relationships, and even our speech patterns. Are we harboring bitterness? Are we honoring our spouses? Are our words aligned with God's love? These questions aren't just about morality; they are about cultivating a lifestyle that keeps our prayer-lanes unobstructed and open. As we reflect on these insights, we are invited to pursue a deeper level of personal consecration, not just for the sake of answered prayers, but for a richer, more authentic relationship with our King.

February 18, 2025 Escaping Toil, Pressure & Frustration

Episode 232: Escaping Toil, Pressure & FrustrationIn our spiritual journey, we often encounter seasons of toil, frustration, and emptiness. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits delves into the story of Peter's miraculous catch of fish in Luke 5, revealing a profound truth: our breakthrough isn't about the 'fish' we catch, but about welcoming Jesus into our 'boat.' When we're feeling stuck or unproductive in our faith, the answer isn't to try harder or look within ourselves for solutions. Instead, we're called to simply invite Jesus into our situation, surrender control, and trust His timing. This shift in focus from our own efforts to Christ's presence can transform our perspective, leading to unexpected blessings and a deeper understanding of our purpose in God's kingdom. As we learn to prioritize our relationship with Jesus over visible results, we open ourselves to true spiritual growth and fulfillment.

February 11, 2025 Doubting God’s Goodness

Episode 231: Doubting God’s GoodnessHas God been good to you? Is God good to you right now? Do you have an expectation of God’s goodness to you for the future? In this episode of the Mavericks & Misfits podcast, we are challenged to confront our doubts about God's goodness, especially during difficult times. The key scripture explored is Isaiah 54:2-3, where God exhorts His people to 'enlarge the place of your tent' and to 'lengthen your cords.' This passage, originally directed at ancient Israel, carries a profound message for us today: God wants us to prepare for growth, abundance, and His favor, even when we feel undeserving. Jeff Lyle draws credible parallels between Israel's rebellion and our own struggles with sin, reminding us that God's love and compassion persist even through seasons of His discipline. This message challenges us to shift our perspective from a works-based relationship with God to one rooted in His unconditional love and grace. As we journey in faith, we are encouraged to combat the enemy's accusations and embrace God's promises of restoration and blessing, regardless of our past failures or current circumstances.

February 4, 2025 Before You Take Off Your Armor

Episode 230: Before You Take Off Your ArmorIn this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we examine the undiagnosed issue of pride and arrogance in many Christians’ hearts., We are challenged to examine our own hearts, and to confront the subtle ways we may be living with undiagnosed presumption. Drawing from the story of King Ahab and Ben-Hadad in 1 Kings 20, we are reminded of the danger of boasting before the battle has even begun. The key phrase, 'Let not him who straps on his armor boast of himself as he who takes off his armor,' serves as a wake-up call to our often complacent faith. This message urges us to consider how our cultural context, particularly in prosperous nations, may have bred a false sense of invincibility in our spiritual lives. We're encouraged to embrace the biblical truths of suffering, self-denial, and humility as essential components of authentic discipleship. By confronting our latent arrogance and hyper-victorious mentality, we can cultivate a more genuine, battle-ready faith that's prepared for the spiritual warfare we face daily.

January 28, 2025 The Salted Slug in the Church

Episode 229: The Salted Slug in the ChurchIn this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we're challenged to confront a crucial aspect of our faith that's often overlooked in modern Christianity: the necessity of repentance. The central theme revolves around Jesus' words in Luke 13:3, 'Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.' We're reminded that this hard truth, though uncomfortable, is an essential part of the gospel message. Jeff uses the vivid analogy of a 'salted slug' to illustrate how the church has tried to dissolve this challenging doctrine. However, we're called to resurrect this vital teaching, recognizing that true love often means speaking difficult truths. As we reflect on this, we're encouraged to examine our own faith journeys. Are we embracing a full gospel that includes repentance, or have we settled for a watered-down version that avoids confronting sin? This message urges us to stand firm in biblical truth, even when it's countercultural, and to lovingly share the complete gospel message with others.

January 21, 2025 Resentment, Anger & Bitterness: Get it Fixed

Episode 228: Resentment, Anger & Bitterness: Get it FixedIn this powerful message, we're challenged to confront a critical aspect of our spiritual lives: unresolved anger and conflict. The teaching draws from Jesus' words in Matthew 5:21-24, where He equates anger with murder in God's eyes. This radical perspective forces us to reevaluate how we handle our relationships, especially within the church. We're reminded that forgiveness isn't optional for believers; it's a fundamental reflection of Christ's nature within us. The message emphasizes that our vertical relationship with God is directly impacted by our horizontal relationships with others. Are we willing to leave our gift at the altar and reconcile with our brother before we worship? This teaching calls us to examine our hearts, confront our bitterness, and take courageous steps towards reconciliation, even when it's uncomfortable. It's a wake-up call to prioritize relational health in our spiritual journey, recognizing that our treatment of others directly reflects our relationship with God.

January 14, 2025 Too Strong for God

Episode 227: Too Strong for GodAre we too strong for our own good? This thought-provoking message challenges our desire for constant victory and strength, reminding us that God sometimes allows weakness in our lives for a greater purpose. The story of King Uzziah in 2 Chronicles 26 serves as a powerful warning about the dangers of pride that can come with uninterrupted success. As long as Uzziah sought the Lord, he prospered, but when he became strong, he grew proud and fell. This narrative invites us to examine our own hearts: Are we relying on our own strength or on God's grace? It's a call to cultivate humility and maintain a posture of dependence on God, even in our moments of triumph. We're encouraged to see our weaknesses not as obstacles, but as opportunities for God's power to be perfected in us.

January 7, 2025 Birthright, Destiny & Reward

Episode 226: Birthright, Destiny & RewardAs we step into 2025, we're called to reflect on our spiritual birthright and the choices that shape our destiny. The story of Jacob and Esau from Genesis 25 serves as a powerful reminder of how easily we can trade our God-given inheritance for temporary satisfaction. Esau's decision to sell his birthright for a bowl of stew symbolizes the danger of prioritizing immediate gratification over eternal rewards. This narrative challenges us to examine our daily decisions: Are we choosing the path that leads to our spiritual destiny, or are we settling for 'bowls of stew' that satisfy only for a moment? We're reminded that our inheritance in Christ is not just about salvation, but about the rewards we earn through faithful living. Let's be intentional about evaluating our choices, resisting the pull of temporary pleasures, and staying focused on the eternal value of our actions. As we navigate the obstacles of life, may we hold fast to our identity as children of God, refusing to compromise our birthright for fleeting worldly gains.

December 31, 2024 Four Kingdom Seasons

Episode 225: Four Kingdom SeasonsAs we embark on a new year, let's reflect on four distinct spiritual seasons that shape our faith journey. Drawing wisdom from Joshua 5, we're reminded of the Season of Purging, where God lovingly disciplines us to remove doubt and unbelief. This challenging time prepares us for the promised land ahead. Next, we enter a Season of Consecration, symbolized by the Israelites' males circumcision before attempting to in inherit the land of promise. Here, we're called to intentionally set ourselves apart for God's purposes, allowing Him to heal our wounds and strengthen our faith. The Season of Contemplation follows, where we pause to remember God's faithfulness, just as the Israelites celebrated Passover before conquering Jericho. Finally, we reach the Season of Receiving, where we enjoy the fruits of our spiritual labor and God's promises. These seasons remind us that our journey with God is dynamic, purposeful, and ultimately rewarding. As we navigate these phases, let's embrace each season with patience and faith, knowing that God is shaping us for His glory.

December 17, 2024 Upside Down Christmas

Episode 223: Upside Down ChristmasAs we approach the Christmas season, we're invited to reflect on the profound paradox of Christ's birth. The Gospel of Luke presents us with a seemingly ordinary event - a child born in humble circumstances. Yet this birth represents the most extraordinary moment in human history: God becoming man. We're challenged to look beyond the sentimentality often associated with the nativity and recognize the raw, messy reality of Jesus' birth. This serves as a powerful reminder of Christ's willingness to fully embrace the human experience, from the vulnerability of infancy to the agony of the cross. The imagery of the King of Kings being wrapped in simple swaddling clothes and laid in a manger speaks volumes about God's nature and His plan for redemption. As we contemplate this, we're called to emulate Christ's humility in our own lives, recognizing that true greatness often comes through lowering ourselves in service to others.

December 10, 2024 The Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit

Episode 222: The Blasphemy of the Holy SpiritIn the most recent episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we encounter a powerful exploration of the unpardonable sin as we delve into the depths of Jesus' teaching on the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The central passage, found in Matthew 12, reveals a profound spiritual truth: while all sins can be forgiven, there's one that stands apart, and Jesus declared that this sin will not be forgiven in this age or the one to come. As we unpack this concept, we're challenged to consider the gravity of repeatedly and willfully attributing the work of Holy Spirit to Satan. This isn't about a momentary lapse or theological misunderstanding, but a hardened heart that persistently rejects the Holy Spirit's ways, works, and revelation. We are reminded of the crucial role the Holy Spirit plays in our salvation journey - convicting us of sin and granting us the ability to repent. This message serves as both a sobering warning and a call to remain sensitive to the Spirit's work in our lives. As we reflect on this teaching, we're encouraged to approach God's work with humility and openness, recognizing that His ways may sometimes challenge our preconceptions.

December 3, 2024 Getting Free From the Spirit of Fear

Episode 221: Getting Free From the Spirit of FearIn this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we are confronted with the reality of spiritual warfare and the dangerous possibility of the spirit of fear in our lives. The central theme revolves around Deuteronomy 20:8, which warns us about the contagious nature of any fear we might be carrying inside. We're reminded that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). The testimony from 2022 of the dove and the vultures on the grounds of Antioch Outpost serves as a poignant metaphor for the spiritual battles we face, highlighting how periods of peace can be followed by intense spiritual attacks. This message challenges us to recognize fear as a spiritual issue, not just an emotional one, and encourages us to seek deliverance and freedom. We're called to examine our hearts, confront our fears, and consider how our spiritual state affects those around us. The ultimate goal is to live in the fullness of faith, free from the bondage of fear, so we can fulfill our divine purpose and positively impact others.

November 26, 2024 The Greatest Question

Episode 220: The Greatest QuestionIn this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we delve into the true meaning of eternal life and what it means to genuinely know Christ. The passage reveals that eternal life isn't just about believing facts about Jesus, but about having an intimate, transformative relationship with Him. We're challenged to examine our hearts and ask: do we truly know Jesus, or are even we possibly going through religious motions? This message reminds us that many people, even those who appear to be doing good works in Jesus' name, may be shocked to find they never truly knew Him. It's a call for us to move beyond surface-level faith and into a deep, surrendered relationship with Christ. As we reflect on this, we're encouraged to approach God humbly, asking Him to reveal any areas where we may be falling short of true intimacy with Him. This teaching invites us to simplify our faith, focusing on what truly matters - knowing and being known by Jesus.

November 19, 2024 What Is Driving You?

Episode 219: What Is Driving You?In our spiritual journey, we often face the challenge of aligning our emotions, thoughts, and will with God's truth. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits delves into Colossians 3:1-2, urging us to 'seek the things that are above' and 'set our minds on things above, not on earthly things.' It's a powerful reminder that as Christians, we're called to intentionally focus our thoughts on Christ and His kingdom. Jeff Lyle emphasizes that discipleship requires discipline - it's not accidental, but a conscious choice we make daily. By developing a mind centered on Kingdom truth, we can better discern deception and maintain our peace, even when our emotions fluctuate. This lesson challenges us to examine what's driving our lives: is it our ever-changing feelings, our analytical minds, or our Holy Spirit-empowered will? As we reflect on this, we're encouraged to surrender our will to God, allowing Him to guide us beyond the limitations of our emotions and intellect.

November 12, 2024 When Do We Expose Them?

Episode 218: When Do We Expose Them?In a world where spiritual leaders sometimes fall from grace, how do we navigate our faith journey with discernment? This powerful episode of Mavericks & Misfits delves into the challenging terrain of suspicion and skepticism in Christian ministry. Drawing wisdom from Acts 5, we're reminded of Gamaliel's counsel to 'leave them alone' if a movement is truly of God. This teaches us the importance of humility in our judgments, and the need to trust in God's ultimate discernment. Today’s podcast challenges us to examine our own hearts first, focusing on rooting out bitterness, cynicism, and unwarranted suspicion. It's a call to balance healthy discernment with a recognition that God often uses imperfect vessels for His perfect purposes. As we wrestle with these truths, we're encouraged to pray for wisdom, seek God's guidance, and resist the temptation to become crusaders against every perceived flaw in ministry.

October 29, 2024 Going On Record About the Election

Episode 217: Going On Record About the ElectionIn our spiritual journey, we often face the challenge of aligning our emotions, thoughts, and will with God's truth. As we approach a critical moment in our nation's history, we're called to reflect deeply on our values and how they align with our faith. This message challenges us to consider the sanctity of life and the profound responsibility we bear as Christians in shaping our society. The central theme revolves around protecting the unborn, drawing parallels to biblical accounts of child sacrifice to false gods like Molech. We're reminded of God's judgment on nations, including ancient Israel, for such practices – and we are called to consider how God would ever let America escape the same judgment. This isn't just about politics; it's about standing for God's creation and His image in every human life. As believers, we must ask ourselves: How will we account for our choices before God? Are we truly living out our faith in all aspects of our lives, including our civic duties? This message urges us to courageously stand for biblical principles, even when it's uncomfortable or unpopular. It's a call to align our votes with our values and to be unashamed in defending the vulnerable.

October 22, 2024 3 Prophetic Questions Jesus once asked his closest followers

Episode 209: 3 Prophetic QuestionsJesus once asked his closest followers three vital questions. From those three questions found in Mark 8:18, we are able today to draw out three priorities that all modern believers should be considering. With the global chaos and biblical signs of the end of the age happening right in front of us, there is no option to be a passive spectator. These three ancient prophetic questions from Jesus can serve as a catalyst for our own present journeys in the faith. Time is of the essence, and we cannot afford to wake up late.

October 15, 2024 When Holy Spirit Gifts Cease

Episode 215: When Holy Spirit Gifts CeaseIn this final look at spiritual gifts, we delve into the heart of a controversial topic that challenges our understanding of God's ongoing work in the world. The debate revolves around the continuation of the Holy Spirit's gifts in modern times, urging us to reconsider any preconceived notions we might hold. By examining 1 Corinthians 13 and the prophecy of Joel 2, we're invited to see how these spiritual gifts are intricately tied to the second coming of Christ. This perspective encourages us to remain open and proactive about the supernatural workings of God in our lives today. As we reflect on this, we're challenged to ask ourselves: are we limiting God's power in our lives by disbelieving in these gifts? How might our faith and ministry be transformed if we embraced the full spectrum of Holy Spirit's work? This episode of Mavericks & Misfits calls us to a deeper, more experiential faith that goes beyond mere intellectual assent.

October 8, 2024 How Is Prophetic Ministry Released?

Episode 214: How Is Prophetic Ministry Released?In this episode of mavericks & misfits, we delve into the fascinating world of New Testament prophecy, exploring its purpose and proper use within the church. The key message is that prophecy, when used correctly, builds up, encourages, and consoles believers. We are reminded of 1 Corinthians 14:3-4, which emphasizes that prophecy is for a believer’s edification. This gift is not primarily about predicting doomsday events or setting dates for the end times, but rather about speaking God's heart into situations and lives. We are challenged to pursue this gift earnestly, as Paul instructs, but also to test every prophetic word against Scripture. Toward the end of the podcast, the parallel drawn between clear streams of water and destructive flows of lava reminds us that true prophecy should refresh and nourish, not burn and destroy. As we reflect on this, let's consider how we can cultivate a healthy prophetic culture in our churches, one that honors God and builds up the body of Christ.

October 1, 2024 Prophecy- What It Is & What It Isn't

Episode 213: Prophecy- What It Is & What It Isn'tIn our journey of faith, we often encounter the profound mystery of spiritual gifts and, particularly, prophecy generates much debate among Christians. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits challenges us to reconsider our understanding of prophetic ministry in the New Testament era. We are reminded that while Old Testament prophecy carried the full weight of divine authority, the New Testament gift of prophecy requires discernment and testing within the community of believers. This shift emphasizes our collective responsibility in stewarding this particular spiritual gift. The Apostle Paul's exhortation in 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21 becomes our guiding principle: 'Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good.' This teaching invites us to embrace the prophetic with wisdom, encouraging a balanced approach that neither rejects nor blindly accepts every prophetic word as unquestionably being sent from God. As we navigate this delicate terrain, we are called to cultivate a spirit of discernment, rooted in Scripture and guided by the Holy Spirit, fostering a mature and responsible engagement with prophetic ministry in our contemporary faith communities.

September 24, 2024 Supernatural Powers of Healings & Miracles

Episode 211: Supernatural Powers of Healings & MiraclesIn this exploration of spiritual gifts, we delve into the complex and often misunderstood realms of healing and miracles. Today’s episode challenges us to examine our beliefs about these two gifts of the Spirit, urging us to find a balance between robust faith and specific biblical understanding about what these gifts are and how they are used. We're reminded that while the gifts of healings (plural in the original Greek) and miracles are real and available today, yet they don't always manifest as we expect. The examples of Paul, who healed many but also had ministry partners that were not instantly healed, teach us humility and dependence on God's will and the need for growing faith. This episode also encourages us to pursue these two gifts earnestly, but also to approach them with wisdom, avoiding both skepticism and presumption. It's a call to deepen our faith while remaining grounded in Scripture, reminding us that our ultimate goal is to grow closer to Jesus, not primarily to possess supernatural powers.

September 17, 2024 Words of Wisdom, Knowledge & Faith

Episode 210: Words of Wisdom, Knowledge & FaithToday, we jump back into three powerful gifts of the Holy Spirit: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and the gift of faith. These gifts are not meant for personal gain or recognition, but for the common good of the body of Christ. The word of wisdom brings divine insight into complex situations, as demonstrated in Acts 15 when Peter addressed the Jerusalem council. The word of knowledge supernaturally reveals information about others, often paired with wisdom to minister effectively. Finally, the gift of faith is described as an endowment of unwavering trust in God's promises. Jeff shares about how these three gifts flow in a few individuals with whom he ministers. We are all encouraged to earnestly desire these gifts, recognizing that they all operate by faith and are meant to edify the church. Pay special attention to what is shared about the gift of faith as it is the gift that empowers the use of all the other gifts.

September 10, 2024 Private, Personal Praying in Tongues

Episode 210: Private, Personal Praying in TonguesIn this exploration of the gift of tongues, we delve into the profound spiritual practice of praying in the Spirit. The apostle Paul's teachings in 1 Corinthians 14 illuminate the distinction between private and public use of tongues. We learn that praying in tongues bypasses our intellect, allowing the Holy Spirit to intercede through us according to God's will. This practice requires humility and faith, as we surrender our need for understanding and control. By embracing this gift, we can experience a deeper partnership and intimacy with God, and also the edification of our own spirit. This episode of mavericks & Misfits challenges us to step out of our comfort zones and pursue this spiritual gift, reminding us that it's a journey of growth and faith.

September 3, 2024 The Fight Over Tongues

Episode 209: The Fight Over TonguesIn this powerful exploration of the gift of tongues, we delve into the heart of a controversial yet vital aspect of Christian life, discipleship, and ministry. Today’s episode emphasizes that tongues, far from being obsolete, remain a relevant and transformative gift for believers today. We're challenged to examine our preconceptions and to open ourselves up to the supernatural workings of the Holy Spirit. Today’s podcast draws from key passages in Acts and 1 Corinthians, illustrating how tongues manifested differently yet consistently throughout early church history. This diversity reminds us that God's ways often transcend our limited understanding, calling us to faith beyond intellectual reasoning. As we contemplate the three types of tongues - prayer, praise, and prophetic - we're invited to embrace a deeper, more mysterious dimension of our relationship with God. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits encourages us to step out of our comfort zones and into a realm where the Spirit edifies us in ways our minds cannot fully comprehend.

August 27, 2024 What If We Were Taught Error About the Gifts?

Episode 208: What If We Were Taught Error About the Gifts?As we continue to explore the gifts of the Holy Spirit on Mavericks & Misfits, we are challenged in this episode to reconsider our understanding of the Holy Spirit's active role in our lives today. Spiritual gifts are not just a theological debate, but a vital aspect of our Christian walk. The Bible alone must settle the ongoing debate about the modern validity of spiritual gifts. This teaching encourages us to study Scripture with an open mind, seeking God's truth rather than relying solely on denominational teachings. We are called to earnestly desire spiritual gifts – that has to mean something! Whoever reached you first with their teachings on Holy Spirit gifts is likely the source of what you still believe today. But what if you were taught error? This episode invites us to examine our own beliefs and practices, challenging us to grow in our understanding and use of spiritual gifts for the benefit of the Body of Christ.

August 20, 2024 The Gifts of the Spirit

Episode 207: The Gifts of the SpiritIn this latest episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we are challenged to reconsider our understanding of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The core teaching comes from 1 Corinthians 12, where Paul emphasizes that spiritual gifts are given to each believer for the common good of the church. We are reminded that these gifts aren't just for a select few or limited to a specific time in history, but are meant for all believers today. Or are they? Many Jesus-loving, Kingdom-advancing Christians emphatically deny that Holy Spirit gifts continue today. This episode encourages us to embrace both the Word of God and the gifts of the Spirit, rather than choosing between them ourselves or forcing others to do so. As we reflect on this, we're invited to examine our own beliefs and ask ourselves: Are we fully embracing all that God has for us through His Spirit?

August 13, 2024 The Waiting Season

Episode 206: The Waiting SeasonIn this exploration of waiting seasons, we are reminded that God's timing is often different from our own. This episode emphasizes that waiting isn't about inactivity, but about faithful service and character development. We're encouraged to embrace these seasons as opportunities for growth, learning to trust in God's perfect plan. Jeff draws from the words of Jesus in Luke 21:19, 'In your patience possess your souls,' highlighting the spiritual importance of endurance and steadfastness. This message challenges us to shift our focus from seeking immediate success to developing Christ-like character, reminding us that our ultimate calling is to become more like Jesus.

August 6, 2024 Why I Vote Conservative

Episode 205: Why I Vote ConservativeNeither political party in America perfectly represents Christian values. We wonâ€™t be electing a Messiah in 2024. Yet, to vote is to give expression into the direction our nation is heading. Christians should cast a vote in order to help advance in America a platform that best represents the values which God assigns blessing to, and to avoid any held values which God has promised that He will curse. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits speaks boldly into two primary issues, and the spiritual convictions behind those issues, which serve to secure the political vote of host Jeff Lyle.

July 30, 2024 How To Repent

Episode 204: How To RepentIn this episode of mavericks & Misfits, we are challenged to examine our understanding of true repentance. It's not just a one-time event, but a lifestyle for Christians who value intimate fellowship with God. We are reminded that repentance begins with the Holy Spirit's conviction, followed by our confession and forsaking of sin. This teaching emphasizes the importance of trusting in God's forgiveness and cleansing, as stated in 1 John 1:9. We are encouraged to advance in our faith journey, even after stumbling, knowing that God's grace empowers us to keep moving forward. This teaching offers practical steps for maintaining a repentant heart, crucial for our spiritual growth and maintaining a close relationship with God.

July 23, 2024 To Wrestle With God

Episode 203: To Wrestle With GodIf you are unsure as to whether or not you have ever wrestled with God, it is likely that you already have done so, but you likely did not know it was Him. Jacob had the same experience, and only identified God as the one who pinned Him AFTER the match was over. In our wrestling-with-God season there is both profit and pain. How we cooperate with the wrestling determines which one of these two results we live more with. If we welcome Him to pin us, He blesses us and gives us new starts and greater revelation. If we continue to fight for self, we live with a greater awareness of the pain and miss the value of the profit. This episode is going to connect so many dots for those who listen.

July 16, 2024 Understanding Suffering

Episode 202: Understanding SufferingIf there is one area where it seems that Christians have strong opinions, it is the topic of suffering in the life of a believer. There are, as I mentioned, strong opinionsâ€¦but who has a strong biblical grasp of the topic of suffering? Because of an out-of-bounds teaching on prosperity and health over the last four decades, there now exists a generation of Jesus-followers who have no grid of how to respond to or communicate upon the issue of suffering in the lives of faithful Christians. Todayâ€™s episode offers some counterbalance to the false notion that God has obligated Himself to prevent any and all suffering in the lives of His children. Buckle up, because this episode will take you somewhere your flesh will not wish to go.

July 9, 2024 Protecting Your Personal Peace

Episode 201: Protecting Your Personal PeaceMost of the world thinks of peace as the absence of conflict. Beyond that, many of those same people assume that peace is unattainable unless that absence of conflict is their current reality. Wouldnâ€™t it be terrible if that were true? That would mean that would be zero possibility of peace unless everything in our lives was pleasant, friction-free and easy on our souls. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we will learn that peace is something that is to be prized, and especially when it is attained in the midst of real-life struggles. Because we live in a world conditioned by sin and brokenness, we will only experience spiritual peace to the degree that prioritize and pursue it. The Apostle Paul teaches us how to do exactly that as he instructs the Philippian believers to prioritize and protect peace in their own minds. We are personally responsible for our own personal peace and there are things we can do every day to either enlarge our peace or to undermine it.

June 25, 2024 Turn Up Your Volume

Episode 200: Turn Up Your VolumeCelebrating 200 episodes of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff goes for the jugular in this episode. Without apology, the listener will be called into a radical commitment to Word & Spirit, which was the foundational purpose of the M&M podcast. If there was ever a time to refuse to settle for mediocrity as a follower of Jesus, it is now. In this episode, Jeff challenges both evangelicals and charismatics to learn from one another and to embrace a passionate commitment to Word & Spirit. This message serves as a rekindling of the original Mavericks & Misfits flame in Episode 200.

June 11, 2024 Knowing Your Calling

Episode 199: Knowing Your CallingMost Christians sincerely want to know what their life-purpose is. The American Dream is not satisfying for the Spirit-filled believer. We know we are here for more than success, pleasure, money, and comfort. Yet not all believers have discerned their purpose from God. Todayâ€™s episode supplies three components for what it means to discern and live out Godâ€™s call upon our individual lives. There is plenty of substance supplied in this episode regarding Godâ€™s assigning, defining, and refining of His call on our lives. How do receive the initial call and steward it throughout the various seasons in our lifetime? Jeff shares some of his own story along with the testimony of Amy, his bride, as he helps the listener consider their own calling from God.

June 4, 2024 Receiving What God Is ReleasingÂ

Episode 198: Receiving What God Is Releasing It may surprise you to learn that many followers of Jesus do not live with an actual awareness of who they are in Him. When we are foggy about this key piece of what it means to be Godâ€™s child, then there arises a skewing of so much of our lives. This podcast unpacks three elements that we need to become proactive in if we are to be who God desires us to be, and to do what God has purposed us to do. These three components are, Identity, Activity, and Trajectory. This episode of Mavericks and Misfits and the one that will be released after it will help you to discern your calling/assignment and to proactively live it out in a manner that never becomes attached from your identity.

May 28, 2024 The Silence of God

Episode 197: The Silence of GodOne of the greatest challenges for believers occurs when we find ourselves in a season where we cannot hear Godâ€™s voice. We read His written Word, and we know He speaks there, but Jesus did not merely say we would have His book - Jesus said that His sheep would hear His voice. We pray and it seems that God does not respond. We plead for answers, and they do not come. We feel we have endured and waited long enough, but Heavenâ€™s silence causes our despair. We begin to believe that nobody else has ever gone through the silence of God and made it out whole. What is the Christian to do in seasons of Godâ€™s silence? Todayâ€™s podcast will help us see that this experience is common among Christians and that there a few simple instructions available to us when we are waiting for God to speak.

May 21, 2024 Ignorance & Impotence in the Church

Episode 196: Ignorance & Impotence in the ChurchThe first Christians operated with two primary forces in the Church: truth and power. Apostolic doctrine (truth) and the gifts of the Holy Spirit (power) characterized all that the Church was and did in those early years. Somewhere along the line, the marriage of these two essentials experienced a divorce. The expression of the Church became one or the other, but no longer both. We need a remarriage to occur in the present day. This episode focuses on the urgent need for a recapturing of the truth of the Word of God. How do you know that what you believe is valid? Are you taking someone elseâ€™s word for it? That would be VERY risky. You may be surprised to learn from Scripture that the people who join with the Antichrist at the end of the age had one thing in common: they did not know nor love Godâ€™s truth. Listen carefully and consider the offer in todayâ€™s episode to join others in pursuing a trajectory to grow in learning and wielding Godâ€™s truth so that you live as one who is deception-proof.

May 14, 2024 What It Takes to Endure

Episode 195: What It Takes to EndureWhen a Mavericks & Misfits listener reached out via email and confessed her desire to quit everything in her life, Jeff felt like he was supposed to honor her request to dedicate an episode to the topic of enduring rather than quitting. In this episode, Jeff shares a handful of commitments, disciplines, and values that every believer should embrace in order to continue in the things which God has asked of them. Encouragingly, there is also permission and guidance in how to say NO to other peopleâ€™s expectations of you that are not consistent with Godâ€™s leadership in your life. This episode is filled with practical wisdom and guidance that helps us finish strong.

May 7, 2024 Knowing What Season You Are In

Episode 194: Knowing What Season You Are InAs we mature in the faith, we gain the ability to discern the type of season we are in as we follow Jesus. Not every season is the same, therefore there are differing challenges, opportunities, and expectations which God releases in each season. In this episode Jeff Lyle unpacks six common seasons in the life of a believer and addresses how we can go deeper with the Lord in each of them. If we fail to discern the season, we will find it difficult to know and cooperate with Godâ€™s purposes in that season. When we understand our present season, we are better equipped to receive all that the Father has awaiting us there.

April 30, 2024 Confronting the Religious Spirit

Episode 193: Confronting the Religious SpiritJesus wasnâ€™t always polite. He did not always speak with gentle tones. He was not committed to making conversations easy on people. Jesus said the hard thingsâ€¦and sometimes He said the hard things in a hard manner. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits takes us through six separate and intense statements that Jesus made against the religious leaders of His day. Rarely do we stop and recognize how offensive these statements would have been to the Pharisees. In fact, when He delivered all six of his indictments against them, they looked for rocks to use to stone Him to death on the spot. When confronting the religious spirit, Jesus did not hold back. If we are to be like Him, there will be times when we will need to be as direct as He was.

April 23, 2024 Ambition: Good or Bad?

Episode 192: Ambition: Good or Bad?If God were to ever promote you above and beyond your character, it would end up crushing you. In a generation wherein believers of all ages are clamoring for recognition and success in the Kingdom, we are in an hour which desperately needs a reset. Your life and ministry cannot be about your calling, your gift, your anointing, or your influence. Superstar Christianity is flawed and fragile, yet it seems to be presented as the measurable goal for so many Christians. From John the Baptistâ€™s life we can learn what it means to submit our lives, callings, anointings, giftings, and plans to God for His glory. This episode contains questions and answers that we cannot afford to ignore any longer.

April 16, 2024 To Fight Or Not To Fight

Episode 191: To Fight Or Not To FightSometimes the Bible instructs us to stand down and refuse to lift a hand against an enemy. At other times, we see clearly in Scripture that God expects us to proactively defeat and drive out our enemies. When it comes to conflicts between Christians, how are we to know which is the right approach to warfare? This episode of Mavericks & misfits draws from Jeff Lyleâ€™s personal and recent experiences of heavy conflict with other believers. Using Scripture, we find that we must cultivate intimacy with God ahead of the fight prior to gaining discernment from God about the fight. We all have battles with others, and this episode will help you slow down and receive Godâ€™s instructions for your present or next battle.

April 9, 2024 How to Forgive

Episode 190: How to ForgiveOne of the most difficult things to live out as a follower of Christ is His command to live with a heart free of bitterness and unforgiveness. We have all been done wrongly by someone. Words, actions, and attitudes sometimes come our way from others with no other intention but to hurt us. We feel their stings. Then, Jesus comes to us and calls us to forgive them for everything they have said and done. Furthermore, He commands us to do this same thing with everyone for everything as long as we are alive. How in the world are we supposed to live with hearts like this? Jesusâ€™ call to us in this way is not impossible. It is hard, but not impossible. When we learn how to perpetually forgive, we begin to live in a realm of the faith that most believers never enter. Jesus will train us in how to forgive.

March 26, 2024 What About Fasting?

Episode 189: What About Fasting?Jeff Lyleâ€™s first encounter with fasting as a Christian came in the form of a weekly legalistic demand. For the first 18 months of his Christian life, he would fast for a legal 24 hours, sometimes setting his alarm at 12:01 AM to get up and eat after fasting the previous 24 hours. Because of this, Jeff abandoned the practice of fasting for the next three years, believing it to be Old Testament law that bore no fruit. When Holy Spirit brought New Testament revelation to him concerning the true meaning of fasting, everything changed. This podcast explores the biblical foundation of fasting +the practical components of why fasting should be a healthy part of each Christianâ€™s experience in following Jesus. Victory, defeating the enemy, power to resist fleshly desires, and access to spiritual wisdom and revelation can all come to us through fasting. This episode unpacks some of this, and is especially helpful to those who are exploring the practice of fasting for the first time.

March 19, 2024 For When You Sin

For many Christians, there exists an ignorance of what to do when they have failed God in something they thought, said, or did. They know that Jesus paid for their sins, but what do they do when they have intentionally sinned in some way that they cannot excuse? We answer, â€œThey must repent.â€ True, but what does repentance look like for a believer? If one asks God for forgiveness but does not change his/her ways, then is that true repentance? What about those who despair deeply when they fail God? What about others who casually excuse sin? This is a deeper topic than any churchified formula can solve. In todayâ€™s episode of mavericks & Misfits, we explore the issue of how a Christian must respond when he/she has sinned.

March 12, 2024 Validating Who You Are & What You Do

Episode 187: Validating Who You Are & What You DoMost people are trying to get ahead. We need to get ahead at work. We would like to get ahead at home and stop drowning in nonstop duties and projects that can seem suffocating. Parents want their kids to get ahead of other kids so thye can eventually get ahead in life. In the Church, many people want fruitful ministries that impact large amounts of people. They want their calling to be validated. They expect to be used and elevated. What does Jesus think about all of this? Todayâ€™s episode calls us to slow down and really think about who we are and what we do. Where do we find validation in these two issues? What makes us worthy and competent? You may be interested to know what the Apostle Paul listed as being the things which validated him in who he was and what he did. We need to learn how to do it the way he did.

March 5, 2024 When Itâ€™s Too Heavy

Episode 186: When Itâ€™s Too HeavyIn this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, listeners invited to consider and confess their internal weariness. Todayâ€™s episode reveals the sometimes overlooked issue of spiritual fatigue and overwhelming weariness that can find Christians. Jesus offers all a simple remedy of how to reignite rest and appropriate self-care. Jeff Lyle discusses Jesus' promise of peace and the metaphor of His yoke, inviting listeners to a partnership that lightens life's burdens. This episode also explores the importance of intentional learning and spiritual growth through partnership with Christ. It concludes by encouraging the audience to embrace Jesus' teachings, transforming weariness into a restful co-laboring that invigorates the soul.

February 27, 2024 Accusation: Satanâ€™s Stranglehold

Episode 185: Accusation: Satanâ€™s StrangleholdAre you feeling the weight of an invisible battle? Have you checked that voice in your head/heart/spirit to make sure it is the right voice to which you should be listening? Todayâ€™s episode of Mavericks & Misfits plunges into the heart of spiritual warfare and offers helpful equipping for defeating a primary tool of the enemy called Accusation. This podcast reveals the three primary modes of accusation that Hell uses to undercut you, and you will discover the strength found in Jesus' blood while hearing about how to silence the accuser even while in the heat of spiritual conflict.

February 20, 2024 Individual Stats Are Killing Championships

Episode 184: Individual Stats Are Killing ChampionshipsIn this M&M episode, we confront the hard truths about disillusionment in the Church, spurred by the sins, flaws and missteps of its leaders. We must determine to hold to the importance of perseverance and commitment, likening the Christian journey to the arduous races, fights, and wars that soldiers and athletes endure for victory. Emphasizing Jesus' steadfast dedication to His church, despite its imperfections, we examine the counterproductive nature of abandoning our local spiritual families in the face of adversity. Our call is clear: to protect, reform, and improve our churches. We also must continue to extend grace to followers and leaders as we strive for reform, rather than walking away. Our individualism can become an idol if we fail to follow Christ in His mission for His bride.

February 13, 2024 Is It Of God Or Not?

Episode 183: Is It Of God Or Not?The Great Commission and the advance of the Kingdom through the Church are the two activities being facilitated by God which will continue until Jesus comes. Within those two activities (which are really just two aspects of the same movement) there are scores of historical movements that God initiates for a season and then allows them to fade into history. How do we know today if something that looks like a move of God actually is a move of God? What are we to do if we suspect that something is not an actual move of God, but is being facilitated by something less than His presence and power? Are we to protest these things? Do we fight them â€“ if so, which ones do we fight and are there some we should leave alone? A wise thinker in the New Testament once gave some counsel that the Church needs to consider when it comes to discerning whether a move is of God or is not of God. In this episode, we unpack and apply what he spoke in Acts 5

February 6, 2024 Noise in the Soul

Episode 182: Noise in the SoulScripture speaks of the â€œnoise of the enemy.â€ Many believers are unaware that a primary tactic of Satan and his demons is to consistently disorient the believer with the noise of warfare. The good news is that each believer is fully authorized and empowered to diagnose this type of noise, and to silence it. Sadly, most believers do not take it seriously enough, and the end result is that the enemyâ€™s noise from the outside begins to become internal noise that brings restlessness to their own soul. Todayâ€™s podcast offers help in identifying and defeating the noise of the enemy. We are able to exterminate these things from our lives, and the result is our strengthened ability to walk in peace and power.

January 30, 2024 Godâ€™s Brief Moment Offer

Episode 181: Godâ€™s Brief Moment OfferToo many voices seem inclined to hijack Godâ€™s communication to declare to us, â€œTHIS IS WHAT GOD IS SAYING RIGHT NOW!â€ The truth is that God is actually saying many things to His people, and that there is not a singular Word that he is presently releasing that stands as the lone Word of the hour. We need a touch of wisdom from Heaven to discern the many things which the Lord is speaking to His Church in this hour. There is an ancient statement in the Book of Ezra that I believe is presently communicating something that the Church in America should consider. In todayâ€™s episode of Mavericks & Misfits, I share this word in a desire that each listener will consider it form himself/herself.

January 23, 2024 What May Reignite Your Flame

Episode 180: What May Reignite Your FlameScripture warns us in two areas concerning our relationship with Holy Spirit:1. Do not grieve Him2. Do not quench HimFar too few Christians grasp how easy it is for us to commit both of these violations. Todayâ€™s podcast helps us analyze if we have quenched the flame of the Spirit in our lives by continually grieving Him with a certain violation of His nature and will for us. The good news is that, once this activity is exposed, we can quickly fix what is wrong and experience the reigniting of the flame. Those who sense how important it is in this season to have Holy Spirit wisdom and power will be benefitted by the instruction in todayâ€™s episode.

January 16, 2024 Red Clay Warfare

Episode 179: Red Clay WarfareFor close to six decades, the American Church has presented an exterior of polish. It has looked really inviting to step into the American Brand of Godâ€™s Kingdom. Wealth, health, triumphalism, prosperity, power, luxury and beautyâ€¦we have been told that these things are what make up the Kingdom. The negative impact of this lopsided messaging is clearly seen today. While God is committed to blessing and prospering each Christian as He wisely chooses, there are some other things PROMISED to each Christian that few wish to discuss. Todayâ€™s podcast takes us out of the place of polish and into the red-clay trenches of warfare.

January 9, 2024 What If Itâ€™s This?

Episode 178: What If Itâ€™s This?NOTE: Please use discretion if you regularly listen to Mavericks & Misfits with your young children as this episode holds candid discussion of sexual issues.Now more than ever, American Christians must take a difficult look in the mirror to become sobered about sexual sin among Christians. The slow drift that has been occurring for decades is no longer a drift. It is a full force torrent that is capsizing individuals, families, churches, and major movements within American Christianity. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits releases unfiltered considerations about the likely reality that it is our tolerance of sexual sins within churches that is currently stagnating what would otherwise be great outpourings of power and glory from Heaven. We have time and space to repent and remedy this issue if we choose to come out of passive tolerance of sexual sins in the Church.

January 2, 2024 Hypocrites In The Church

Episode 177: Hypocrites In The ChurchYou do not need an anointing of spiritual discernment to know that the Church has hypocrites within it. You do, however, need an anointing of biblical discernment to understand the difference between true hypocrites and true Christians who fail to always live up to the righteous standard that God offers us. If a Christian failing or sinning is ALWAYS evidence of hypocrisy, then you yourself would be a hypocrite. Fortunately, the bible clarifies for us the difference between a behavioral failure of a believer that is not equal to hypocrisy. This episode calls all of us to pursue lives of consistent righteousness while also giving us biblical definitions of what a Christian hypocrite actually is. You may discover that you have falsely labeled someone as a hypocrite who actually is a faithful believer who, like you, is seeking to wage war against all sin. This episode will be an eye-opener for many.

December 12, 2023 Blowing Up Christmas For Everyone

Episode 176: Blowing Up Christmas For EveryoneWho would have ever thought that the season on the calendar wherein the world considers the birth of Jesus Christ would have ever ended up being a rope with which Christians play a spiteful game of tug-of-war? If nothing else, Christmastime proves yet again that Christians have learned to fight each other over anything. While each is free to decide for themselves whether or not the modern modes of observing Christmas make sense to them or not, we do well to at least examine what Scripture says about the First Advent of Messiah. From an ancient prophesy, this Mavericks & Misfits episode traces the birth of Jesus all the way to His titles of divinity and His coming return to this planet. What began in Maryâ€™s womb culminates in an eternal throne. This should become the focus of Christmas.

December 5, 2023 What God Is Offering You

Episode 175: What God Is Offering YouThere is a standing offer from Heaven to which not enough people say YES. If God offered to make us all millionaires, nearly everyone would say YES. If God offered to make us all beautiful and healthy, we would rush to sign up. Yet, God has permanently offered to make any child of His incredibly wiseâ€¦and too many shrug, sigh, and walk away. This is the generation that needs to value wisdom more than gold, beauty, or health. There are a couple of verses in Psalm 119 that should grip us. They speak of being wiser than your enemies, your teachers, and those who are older than you. This does not come to the casual, and it seems that most people would say YES to wisdom until they learn what is required to obtain it and keep it. Listen today and find your own YES to Godâ€™s open offer to make you incredibly wise.

November 28, 2023 The Spirit of Offense at the End of the Age

Episode 174: The Spirit of Offense at the End of the AgeWhen Jesus talked about the signs that will precede the Second coming and the end of the age, we are most familiar with the global wars He foretold, the earthquakes, and the famines. Many are unaware that He also spoke of people being deceived into offense, hatred, and falling away. In fact, Jesus taught that so many people will be offended that they will betray their Christian family along with their blood family. Todayâ€™s podcast seeks to provide a means by which we can progress unscathed by the spirit of offense and the defilement of bitterness in our hearts.

November 14, 2023 Why We Need A Five-Fold Comeback

Episode 173:Why We Need A Five-Fold ComebackPastors cannot move a flock into breakthrough. Prophets cannot do it all. Evangelists are insufficient to finish the task. Apostles begin much, but usually arenâ€™t equipped to finish the task alone. Teachers can tell us what, but rarely how or why or where. Do these statements offend you? They shouldnâ€™t. God never intended the Kingdom mission to rest on one leader or even one type of leader. In these last days, we are seeing a clear resurgence of five-fold ministry being initiated and cultivated by God. Do all local churches need to explore this? Yes. Is your home church the exception to the rule? No. When we embrace Godâ€™s original design for Kingdom ministryâ€¦the Kingdom manifests. Todayâ€™s episode reveals the blessings of team ministry and also exposes the downfalls of churches who still prefer a one-man show.

November 7, 2023 When Do I Walk Away?

Episode 172: When Do I Walk Away?There is only one Saviorâ€¦and it is not you. Many Christians are surprised â€“ even shocked! â€“ to learn that the Bible communicates clearly that there are times to sever ties with certain types of people in our lives. While we live with the awareness that we are forbidden to live with bitterness and resentment toward others, the Scriptures are equally clear that we are permitted (and at times we are even commanded) to draw boundaries that result in people no longer being allowed to interact with us. Todayâ€™s episode walks us through several passages of scripture that help us understand when it is time to evict toxic people from our day-to-day living and to entrust their futures to the Lord who has unlimited capacity to bear with them.

October 31, 2023 Prophetic Download About the American Bride

Episode 171:Prophetic Download About the American BrideOn Sunday October 15, 2023, Jeff Lyle received from God an intense word from the Lord as he was driving to church. Before releasing this word publicly, he sat on it for a week before sharing it with his wife. The only other place he has presently released it is this podcast. The inner vision revealed a bride in an unusual wedding gown on her wedding day. Also noteworthy was her hair. From these two captivating images, God began to speak to Jeff a word about something He is and will continue to be doing in the Church in America. May God give wisdom for all who hear â€“ especially those who have given themselves to His glory through the Church in America.

October 24, 2023 Exiting Anxiety & Entering Peace

Episode 170: Exiting Anxiety & Entering PeaceMost of the world thinks of peace as the absence of conflict. Beyond that, many of those same people assume that peace is unattainable unless that absence of conflict is their current reality. Wouldnâ€™t it be terrible if that were true? That would mean that would be zero possibility of peace unless everything in our lives was pleasant, friction-free and easy on our souls. In this podcast episode, we will learn that peace is something that is to be prized, and especially when it is attained in the midst of real-life struggles. Because we live in a world conditioned by sin and brokenness, we will only experience spiritual peace to the degree that we personally, proactively prioritize and pursue it. You are the gatekeeper of your own mind, and what we welcome in serves to influence our levels of personal peace or personal anxiety.

October 17, 2023 The Mind: Renewal & Removal

Episode 169: The Mind: Renewal & RemovalIt is clear in Scripture that the world, the flesh, and the devil work in a concentrated effort to imprison people with deception. The difficult truth is that we do not rise above what we believe is true and prioritized. What we believe to be true owns us. While God has empowered us to defeat the enemies which seek to dominate our thinking, He expects us to personally and proactively enter into a strategy that secures the victory of the mind. This message equips us to know how to proactively protect our minds from deception. Once a believer masters these truths and the necessary disciplines that must accompany them, that same believer will know what it is to defeat demons, deception, and discouragement.

October 10, 2023 Mind Games

Episode 168: Mind Games We typically live to the fullest along the lines of what we believe to be the truest. This is awesome news if you are in alignment with truth. It is devastating if what you unknowingly believe is actually false. The war for the mind is always atop the list of what the enemy seeks to win in our lives. Gratefully, we have divine power to destroy opinions and strongholds which come against Godâ€™s truth in our lives. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits exposes the strategy of Satan to own our thoughts. It also gives a strong call and practical help for each Christian to proactively protect their minds so that they do not fall prey to the spirit of deception which is everywhere in todayâ€™s culture.

October 3, 2023 Benefits Of Praying In Tongues

Episode 167: Benefits of Praying in Tongues A concern often expressed by those who are skeptical of the gift of tongues is centered on what possible value there could be in praying in a language that you do not understand. More than once, I have been interrogated about whether or not it is good stewardship of my time to devote large portions of it to praying privately in tongues. For those who do not pray in tongues, I actually believe these types of concerns are valid. They have a legitimate right to ask. How could they possible perceive the benefit of praying in tongues when they have never embraced it as part of their Christianity? My real curiosity is whether or not they are asking the question to learn an answerâ€¦or just to make the point that they do not value the presumed gift of tongues. Todayâ€™s episode of Mavericks & Misfits contains some of my personal testimony of the benefit of tongues, plus some very clear Scriptures that reveal what happens when we pray in tongues. Â

September 26, 2023 Let's Talk About Tongues

Episode 166: Letâ€™s Talk About Tongues What do you believe about speaking in tongues? For many, the subject is irrelevant to them on a practical basis. They do not speak in tongues, the church they attend does endorse the gift of tongues, and they simply do not see the benefit in the lives of those who say they speak in tongues. For other Christians, the practice of praying in tongues plays a significant part in the life of a Jesus-follower. We all know it is a controversial issue between believers who equally love Godâ€¦but both groups cannot be equally right. Someone believes rightly, and the other believes wrongly about the gift of tongues and whether or not is an ongoing activity among Christians. Todayâ€™s episode asks some important questions about the topic of tongues. As always, we will seek to answer those important questions using the Scriptures. It may very well be that some who listen will begin a journey into the gifts of Holy Spirit that they can both explain biblically and experience personally.

September 19, 2023 The Issue Of Your Identity

Episode 165: The Issue of Your Identity The question often asked to many young children is â€œWhat do you want to be when you grow up?â€ The question is innocent enough but notice the subtle difference: they are not asked WHO they want to be (identity), but WHAT they want to be (activity). Thus began the training of most of us to draw our own sense of being from the thing(s) we are most often doing. This leads to so much unnecessary loss. Could it be that the majority of us have been unconsciously trained to live as pretenders? What if most Christians are ignorant of who they are because they live to do instead of to be? Todayâ€™s podcast highlights several believers in the Bible who pretended to be someone that they were never intended by God to be. Their examples may serve as a point of transformation for us in our own journey.

September 12, 2023 Why You Will Not Quit

Episode 164: Why You Will Not Quit One of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament, Jeremiah, once declared that he felt like quitting on God. Yet, the fire in Jeremiahâ€™s bones refused to let him go silent. The great Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1:8-10 that things got so heavy for him that he despaired of going on living. These men were not snowflakesâ€¦and yet they hit a wall in life and faith at one point. There is an obscure verse in the Book of Isaiah that reveals the heart of God toward those who are discouraged, weak, exhausted, and overwhelmed. You may be surprised at what He says to them (us!). Todayâ€™s podcast is highly pastoral in nature, ministering to that part of us that is, without denial, weak. How can we expect God to bless when we have zero to offer Him? This verse from Isaiah reveals that we often have a deep flaw in our understanding of what it means to live victoriously, strongly, and consistently for the glory of God.

September 5, 2023 A Troubling Ignorance

Episode 163: A Troubling Ignorance You donâ€™t need to ask Christians if they have ever gotten sideways with another believer. It happens. The bible says that iron sharpens ironâ€¦and when that occurs, sparks will fly. What if the person you were upset with was actually an otherwise solid believer who was operating in a blind-spot? Or maybe they really are a fleshly painâ€¦but that is also true because they are operating in a blind-spot that has become a personal stronghold in their life. Jesus once rebuked two of His closest followers for a troubling ignorance that had influenced some of how they were living and ministering. This same ignorance also negatively impacted Moses and David at certain points. Todayâ€™s podcast exposes this potential in all of our lives and offers practical help for you so that you never become a victim of this troubling, yet common, ignorance.

August 29, 2023 Authority & Rebellion

Episode 162: Authority and Rebellion God has established social and spiritual structures within His Kingdom which operate on the premise of delegated authority and the call to obey authority He establishes. These structures are seen in the family, the government, and the workplace. Surprisingly to some, the Bible says more about human authority in the Church more so than any of the previously mentioned areas. How do you regard Godâ€™s established authority structures in the Church? If you have been given a place of leadership and authority in the Church, do you recognize the intense accountability you are under for how you lead others? The issue of rebellion against God-established human authority is seen in multiple places in Scripture. One particular account serves as great instruction to present day believers. How we respond to God-established human authority will either invite His blessing or His strong hand of correction. For some, there is only one chance to get this right.

August 22, 2023 What's Wrong With The Church?

Episode 161: Whatâ€™s Wrong With the Church? This episode of Mavericks & Misfits contains two different main thoughts which easily hold one anotherâ€™s hands for the whole episode. Most of us can see that the Church (and every local expression of it) has some issues to address. What one does once they see these issues reveals a lot about that personâ€™s character and faith. There is something we must all do when we see what is lacking in the Churchâ€¦and there is something that none of us should do. Additionally, how do we safeguard ourselves from being part of the problem in a church? The answer is located in a little seven-word statement from the Apostle Paul found in the book of Galatians. If you can orient your life to this one statement, you will never be a part of the problem.

August 15, 2023 Responding To Relentless Warfare

Episode 160: Responding to Relentless Warfare When you come to Jesus Christ and receive Him by faith as Lord of your life, the enemy begins to watch you. He cannot undo your salvation by faith through grace, but he will commit with fury to oppose any possibility of you bringing glory to God with your life. So he watches and waits to see what you will do next. Many Christians donâ€™t really do much to threaten Hellâ€™s agenda, but for those who do, the enemy will fight to keep you from your assignment. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits unpacks some ways that you must respond when warfare comes against you to undermine you in your lifeâ€™s mission. One man in the Old Testament modeled this tenacious response to warfare, and his example can enlighten and empower you how to fight the enemy and win.

August 8, 2023 Why Some Question God's Love

Episode 159: Why Some Question Godâ€™s Love Most of the listeners of Mavericks & Misfits would never theologically question Godâ€™s love for humanity. Yet, even those who do not question the theology of His love can still wrestle with the degree of Godâ€™s love for them personally. Can anything impact â€“ by either increasing or decreasing â€“ Godâ€™s love for His children? This is no casual question. Much of what we experience in the Christian life is connected to how we receive the love of God for ourselves. The Apostle Paul taught on this topic in Romans 8, and in this episode we will walk through His words as He declares without apology, â€œNo! Nothing can separate us from the covenantal love of the Father which is given to us in Christ!â€

August 1, 2023 Addressing Empty Love Tanks

Episode 158: Addressing Empty Love Tanks Do you know about the time when Jesus sent a word to a church that informed them that He appreciated all that they were doing for Him, but that He was about to completely shut them down? This really happened. They were loyal in service, doctrinally sound, willing to oppose evil, refusing to quit on the missionâ€¦but Jesus stacked all that against the one thing they were missing and sent word to them that He couldnâ€™t let them continue the way they were living. This message to the ancient church at Ephesus holds so much important revelation for Christians today. What was the fatal flaw that the Ephesian Church needed to fix? It had to do with the lack of prioritizing love.

July 25, 2023 Love Is A Commitment

Episode 157: Love Is A Commitment The culture has worked with high level intentionality to redefine what love is. We are now informed that if we speak or act in any way that does not make people feel awesome about themselves at all times, then we are not being loving. If we disagree with people, we can be called haters. If we make moral statements that expose sin and correct harmful ideas or behaviors, we can be called phobic. Is it true that we must endorse and affirm everyone in everything in order to truly love them? Most of you are aware that the answer to that question is NO. Yet, are we Christians actually certain that we ARE operating in the love which God Himself requires? This podcast is the first of a few episodes that will focus on love: Godâ€™s love for His children, our love for Him, and our love for one another.

July 18, 2023 Patience With God's Timing

Episode 156: Patience With Godâ€™s Timing As the Christian grows in his or her relationship with God, eventually the issue of His timing will arise. Why God does not honor our presumed sense of appropriate timing has been a source of struggle for countless believers. More often than not, we feel that He moves too slowly in things wherein we sense an urgency. Impatience arises in our hearts with circumstances, difficult people, and, yes, even God himself. Todayâ€™s episode helps us think through what is at the root of our impatience. What does your restlessness communicate to God? Are you recognizing the means by which He is working to mature you in the area of living in patience? While this topic will certainly stretch us, we cannot avoid the reality that God owns both the clock and the calendar, and we must learn to align with His chosen timing in our lives.

July 11, 2023 The Absalom Spirit

Episode 155: The Absalom Spirit What should we think about that person in the church who almost always thinks that they know better than others? They often find themselves as the go-to person concerning how the primary leader in a church could (and should!) be doing a better job. This person has some wisdom and insights. This person likely has a leadership touch upon them. They listen, understand, and make themselves available for others in the church while the primary leader is busy with other things. Is this type of person a friend or a foe to the work of God? Well, that depends on what is going on inside that personâ€™s heart. Sadly, there is frequently the presence of an attitude or spirit that is aligned with the heart of an Old Testament man named Absalom. This Mavericks & Misfits episode exposes the motivations and actions of a person operating with an Absalom spirit. The listener will receive practical guidance on how to deal with this type of person in the church. Also, you may want to listen to ensure that the seeds of Absalomâ€™s ways have not already begun to sprout in your own heart.

June 27, 2023 Misunderstanding Your Trouble

Episode 154: Misunderstanding Your Trouble It is unavoidable. You, a true follower of Jesus, will occasionally encounter some intense troubles. Sometimes they come and go quickly. At other times, they hang over your head like a thick, dark cloud that releases a torrential downpour. Contrary to a lot of teaching in churches, those who follow Jesus are not immune from painful, frightening circumstances in life. What we must not do in these times is misdiagnose what is happening to us. There are some vital keys that we need to keep hold of during those times when our boat is being filled with the stormy waters. This podcast episode is extremely empowering and helpful for any and all who are in a season that communicates to them that they are way in over the heads. There is a proper way to think about this type of trouble, and also a deadly way for you to think. We all must choose how we will think and trust while the waves are crashing in on us.

June 20, 2023 Temple Or Oikos?

Episode 153: Temple or Oikos? Have you ever heard of oikos? Some of you will know that it is presently a successful brand of yogurt that you can by at your supermarket. Yet, many do not know that this is a Greek word found all throughout our New Testament. It is actually a very important word that has significant emphasis for the modern Church â€“ especially as we inch closer toward the end of the age. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits explains why you need a renewed commitment to both temple and oikos. Also in todayâ€™s podcast are some updates about Jeff Lyleâ€™s personal life, a communication about what is happening at Antioch Outpost where Jeff leads, and an invitation for you to join two local weekly prayer gatherings in metro-Atlanta.

June 13, 2023 Get Back Up

Episode 152: Get Back Up Perhaps one of the truest revelations of what you believe about God is how you respond when you have failed Him. What you believe about your object of trust concerning what makes you right with God is clearly in view by how you act after a failure or sin. So, what makes YOU right with God? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we have to confront whether or not we are more in agreement with the enemyâ€™s accusations or Godâ€™s acceptance. Also, what does being disciplined by God look like in our lives, and how is that different than Him punishing us or rejecting us? These are very real issues that we must get settled so that, when we have failed God, we understand how to get back up and press in to Him again.

June 6, 2023 Discerning The Will Of God

Episode 151: Discerning the Will of God All true Christians desire to know the will of God for their lives. We actually care about pleasing Him. We want to know the right path to choose so that our lives please Him and fulfill His purposes. Much of His specific will can be found in the scriptures. Yet, what do we do when there is no singular verse or bible passage that tells us specifically what is the right thing to do? This episode of Mavericks & Misfits walks us through some steps that help enlighten us to Godâ€™s will. It also exposes some things which obstruct us from knowing Godâ€™s will. The great news is that God desires for you to know and do His will, but it almost always takes you putting in the hard work to obtain that spiritual wisdom and understanding.

May 30, 2023 The Invisible Puppeteer

Episode 150: The Invisible Puppeteer What if I told you that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans were at the head of the American government? What is I further stretched you by declaring that Capitalism, Socialism, Fascism, or Communism were not the actual drivers of historical world governments? The Bible teaches that human, earthly kingdoms are actually under the dominion of Satan. It is a stark statement, but one that cannot be denied if you use Scripture as your primary tool to work through these types of thoughts. Even more, what if I told you that every single human being is either cooperating with Satan and his rule of human kingdoms, or every single human is intentionally resisting the influence of this enemy of God? This podcast calls all of us to THINK about our political views and our alliance with God as a citizen of a human kingdom that is actually lying in the lap of the evil one.

May 23, 2023 Endorsing Kingdom Masculinity

Episode 149: Endorsing Kingdom Masculinity Somewhere along the way, local churches lost the men. In fact, we seemed to have lost maleness as a whole. Kingdom masculinity is not something that many churches are even aware of as a concept any longer. Our churches have become gently feminized over the past fifty years or so, and now the feminization of the American male has taken an anchor-like hold in churches. This episode is a no-nonsense, unfiltered exhortation for men to return to being men. It also contains an appeal for women to support this deep need in our churches. God made males to be menâ€¦and nothing other, nothing less, nothing different than men. The days coming will require a reformation of Kingdom views of masculinity. Far from being toxic, masculinity is vital and we have gone too far and too long in questioning it.

May 16, 2023 The Daughter's Inheritance

Episode 148: The Daughter's InheritanceÂ There are a group of five sisters found in two Old Testament passages whom we need to meet. Their names sound funky to our modern ears, but what they carried in their hearts would be of incredible benefit if Christian women today would dare to expect what they expected. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff Lyle addresses the God-given inheritance to women through Jesus Christ. Callings, gifts, anointings and opportunities for Christian women come from God, not men. When Jesus opens a door, no man can close it. Until Jesus opens a door, no woman can walk through it. This episode is hard-hitting and is anything but woke or politically correct. Kingdom people will likely be helped by itâ€¦ cultural snowflakes will likely melt from it.

May 9, 2023 That Stunning Thing Jesus Said

Episode 147: That Stunning Thing Jesus Said This episode leaves us nowhere to hide. Jesus made a couple of astounding statements recorded in the Gospel of John that the Church can no longer avoid. There is a reason why the modern Church witnesses little to zero supernatural power on a consistent basis. Theological excuses abound for this lack of breakthrough power, but none of them can stand against the simple words of Christ who unapologetically foretold what those who believe in Him should expect to experience when it comes to authority and power. Jeff Lyle calls the listener to examine his/her own life, the level of power in their own home church, and the need for this current generation to step forward and commit to what Jesus modeled and taught about what it means to live a life of supernatural power.

May 2, 2023 The Spirit Of Fear

Episode 146: The Spirit Of Fear One of the most common ailments found in todayâ€™s churches is the issue of people being oppressed under a spirit of fear. In many cases, this is the result of an actual demonic assignment that has leveled a person emotionally, mentally, and volitionally. They simply live under a heavy dread almost all of the time. In other instances, a person is less aware that they are operating under this atmosphere of fear. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we look at some important scriptures about the spirit of fear. We also walk through some of the symptoms of the spirit of fear so that the listener has an opportunity to diagnose if this ailment is happening to them. In the end, Jeff prays over and all who sense the need for freedom from this spiritually suffocating reality.

April 25, 2023 The Changing Of Names

Episode 145: The Changing of Names On Sunday 4/23/23, Antioch Outpost officially became the new name of what had been previously called The Church at Winder for forty years. In Scripture, when God ordained a dramatic shift in identity, covenant, and purpose, He would sometimes change the very name of the person with whom He was working. Name changes in Scripture are very significant. This episode communicates the reason why Jeff and his co-leaders committed to a new name to the church they serve. Maybe more importantly for the listener, Jeff highlights an obscure verse in the Book of Revelation that indicates that all Christians have a new name awaiting them at the end of the age. Now is a great season to consider if you and your church are operating under a name that clearly expresses what God is doing in the earth. Alignment and identity are important. As you listen, consider what God is speaking over you.

April 18, 2023 Jeff & Amy Discuss Wholeness Of Soul

Episode 144: Jeff & Amy Discuss Wholeness Of Soul

April 11, 2023 Jeff & Amy Discuss Open Demonic Doors

Episode 143: Jeff & Amy Discuss Open Demonic Doors

April 4, 2023 Jeff & Amy Discuss Deliverance

Episode 142: Jeff & Amy Discuss Deliverance

March 28, 2023 Word Without Power

Episode 141: Word Without Power Â Letâ€™s disclose the elephant in the room. Christians talk far more about Godâ€™s power than we actually operate in Godâ€™s power. It would seem that the current comfort zone in the American Church is to declare with our mouths how supernaturally powerful God is while, at the same time, being negligent to display with our hands how supernaturally powerful God is. There is a disconnect. In one account in Markâ€™s Gospel, we are given a prophetic glimpse at where much of the Church is today. Three disciples move from the mountaintop of supernatural encounter back down to the foot of the mountain where the supernatural power given to them meets its kryptonite. Christians lose credibility when we get used to being impotent in areas of healing and deliverance. God is exposing our missing ingredient and this episode of mavericks & Misfits will tell us what that missing ingredient is.

March 21, 2023 Money & The Mark Of The Beast

Episode 140: Money & The Mark Of The Beast The bible teaches that a man will arise at the end of the age and take control of global government. The Antichrist will be the most wicked man who ever lived upon the earth. Part of his reign will include his totalitarian control of the worldâ€™s financial markets. Yes, the Antichrist will control the system that controls all the money on the planet. For those who refuse to take the mark of the beast and worship the Antichrist, there will be no participation in commerce. Their money will be seized, and they will no longer be able to buy or sell. If you died today, all that you possess will be passed to whomever you choose. Eventually, that same wealth will end up in the markets controlled by the Antichrist. As we consider the implications of this, we should ask ourselves, â€œWhy am I not giving more into Godâ€™s Kingdom now while I still have power to determine what to do with my wealth?â€ To earn money, to invest it, to keep it, and to store it up here will result in zero rewards when we enter into glory. Todayâ€™s episode has us all consider our finances in the context of the ticking clock which will eventually transfer all of what we have earned and saved into the system run by the most evil man who ever lived. NOW is the time for us to invest into the Kingdom.

March 14, 2023 End Of The Age Finance

Episode 139: End Of The Age Finance Â We all know that we wonâ€™t be taking any of our material wealth with us when we die. Whatever we earned and bought remains here on earth once we are taken into glory. Everyone understands that. Not everyone understands, however, that we can send our wealth ahead of us. The teachings of Jesus and His apostles make it abundantly clear that we are able to store up treasure in Heaven as we manage our earthly wealth in a way that honors Christ and His mission. A commitment to invest in Godâ€™s Kingdom with our finances results in our obtaining rewards in Heaven that can never be lost. So, how much is enough to give into the Kingdom? Are we permitted by God to have nice things and enjoy them while we are on earth? What about the tithe? What about religious manipulators who receive money in the name of God and then betray their donors? There is certainly a lot to consider when we discuss how Christians handle their money. One thing must not be forgotten: the end of the age is here, and our opportunities to invest in the Kingdom and store up treasure in Heaven are coming to an end.

March 7, 2023 Spirit Or Truth?

Episode 138: Spirit Or Truth? We Christians are presently living in an unusual time. While the culture is becoming increasingly aggressive in advancing an anti-God agenda, the Church is beginning to see some amazing releases of awakening and revival. Local assemblies need to be adjusting and preparing for both sides of this equation. Battling against spiritual wickedness in high places needs to be prioritized as we also become people of deeper worship and mission. Some churches are remaining caught between an allegiance to the Word and a move of the Spirit. They are not going to be able to straddle the fence between these two priorities much longer. It is time for your church to become a people of Spirit AND Truth. If your church refuses to do so, this episode boldly calls you to find a new faith-family to unite with.

February 28, 2023 Recovering The Axe Of Jesus

Episode 137: Recovering The Axe Of Jesus When a young prophet lost his axe, he mourned in the presence of Elisha and begged him for supernatural intervention to recover his only tool that would get the job done. While this is an exciting story from 2nd Kings 6, this episode of Mavericks & Misfits calls us to consider a very urgent application of the crucial lessons in this story. When the Church has dropped and lost what Jesus has given us to build His Kingdom with, what should our response be? In this podcast, Jeff Lyle passionately calls his listeners to consider the hour in which we are all living, and the need to recover the axe which Jesus handed the Church nearly 2,000 years ago. With it, we can build what He has designed. Without it, we will build brittle religious monuments dedicated to ourselves. This is the hour in which Jesus is offering us help to recover what has been submerged in disuse for far too long. It is time to recover the axe of Jesus.

February 21, 2023 Discerning & Defeating False Prophets

Episode 136: Discerning & Defeating False Prophets Who do you allow to speak into your life on behalf of God? None of us are without outside voices which work to shape our views of God, His Kingdom, our own identity, and our life purpose. Understanding how important these areas areâ€¦whose voice presently has your ear? Jesus and His apostles repeatedly warn us of the reality of the prevalence of false prophets. In fact, as time moves toward the Second Coming of Jesus, the Bible says we should be even more alert to the rise of these men and women who will presume to speak for God but actually speak errors, lies, manipulation, greed, and destruction. Happily, we are not without the ability to diagnose them, defeat them, and forbid their influence over us. Todayâ€™s episode helps us to again find the spiritually discerning eye, and also to relocate a steel-infused spine to confront this danger that is present in the Church.

February 14, 2023 CHURCHES: Factory Reset

Episode 135: CHURCHES: Factory Reset What kind of local church are you a part of? Who is leading you? Do things like leadership structures, spiritual gifting, personal callings, and cooperative ministry vision really make a difference? Well, if you are the average American churchgoer, your answer may be, â€œIt doesnâ€™t really matter.â€ Yet, if you place high value on Godâ€™s blueprints for His churches, it will matter quite a bit. So much has been added to Godâ€™s plan by man over the centuries that most modern Christians may not even know that we have been operating under a faulty design for church for centuries. It is time for us to embrace the need for a full factory reset and return to the original design from God for His church. Specifically, the area of how local churches are led has to be addressed. This episode will help you evaluate where you personally stand on this vital issue, and also where your church leaders may stand.

February 7, 2023 What If I'm Not Really Saved?

Episode 134: What If I'm Not Really Saved Some of what we see right now happening in our churches is an evangelistic call being released by Holy Spirit to church members. Yes, thatâ€™s right: God is offering those who have sat in churches for years an opportunity to actually be born again. Because of a lack of commitment to biblical teaching on repentance and conversion, our churches are filled with people who believe but have never been redeemed. They have an intellectual grasp of Gospel facts, but they have yet to surrender in their hearts to Jesus as Lord and King. This episode exposes the false Gospel that so many have trusted in, and it can be boiled down to this: A decision without repentance resulting in a belief without obedience. The hour is urgent, and it may be that the greatest harvest of salvations could be awaiting us right in the middle of our gathering places on Sundays.

January 31, 2023 Word Curses & The Spirit Of Shimei

Episode 133: Word Curses & The Spirit Of Shimei Everyone who listens to this episode of Mavericks & Misfits will have an experience with their own personal Shimei. Do you know who this is? He is one of the most despicable people in all of the Bible. He was a partner with the devil in releasing demonic word curses against King David. From this painful snapshot in Davidâ€™s life, we expose six categories of word curses and how they can impact us. Perhaps even more troubling, we may discover that we have sometimes played the role of Shimei in the life of others. For all who struggle with the voice of accusation and condemnation, todayâ€™s podcast will equip you to get free and move forward, never again agreeing with the word cursing voice of a Shimei in your life.

January 24, 2023 A Prophetic Urge To Prepare

Episode 132: A Prophetic Urge To Prepare Sometimes Holy Spirit hijacks the podcast episode. Originally, Episode 132 of Mavericks & Misfits was slated to focus on the issue of spiritual warfare through word curses. Within the first three minutes of the recording, Jeff Lyle felt the wind of the Spirit moving and released a calm but VERY clear word concerning what the Church in America should prepare for in the year 2023. Also included is a personal testimony of an area where Jeff failed his King in 2022, and how God brought Jeff back restored and renewed for the future. Prepare your own heart as you listen to this one â€“ you will be left with much to consider as this year continues to unfold.

January 17, 2023 Kingdom Danger Zone

Episode 131: Kingdom Danger Zone In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff Lyle welcomes his wife, Amy, into the studio to discuss a word that God gave Amy in December of 2022. After pondering this word privately for a few weeks, Amy shared it with Jeff, and he immediately felt like the warning was for many Christians who have unwisely wandered into a danger zone that is filled with destructive landmines. Because of this, an episode of Mavericks & misfits is being dedicated to it. An overlooked verse from the Book of James needs to be front and center in our minds as we make daily decisions about what we are communicating to those around us. Few passages in the New Testament give this specific of a warning to all believers concerning one particular dangerous and destructive behavior. Sadly, it would seem very few Christians are taking this warning seriously. We hope this episode will change their minds.

January 10, 2023 Is The Local Church Still Valid?

Episode 130: Is The Local Church Still Valid Have you noticed the increase of people abandoning their commitments to local assemblies? Since Covid put local church gatherings on a temporary pause, we have discerned that many have since then seemingly concluded with the government that churches are non-essential. But is this true? Does God care if we are part of a local assembly of Christians on a regular basis? Todayâ€™s episode explores many of the reasons why people have given up on the local church. It also offers biblical pushback that God would ever approve such a notion. Our churches are terribly flawed â€“you donâ€™t need nine spiritual gifts to discern that. Yet, with all her flaws, Jesus has not walked away nor given up on the local expression of His body. If you have done so, whatever the reasons, this podcast episode will offer you spiritual food for thought.

January 3, 2023 The Spirit Of The Age Has Infected The Climate Of The Church

Episode 129: The Spirit Of The Age Has Infected The Climate Of The Church It is a long title, but there was not a better way to describe what has happened to the Church in America. Jesus once rebuked two of His closest followers for not discerning what spirit they were operating in. This same rebuke is being spoken over much of the Church today. The divisive, hostile, hyper-sensitive, reactionary spirit in the culture has now infected local churches and the symptoms are primarily visible on Christianâ€™s social media feeds. While it is plain to see in others, can I take a look in the mirror and discern it in myself? Todayâ€™s podcast calls us to decontaminate our hearts and churches before we get too much further into a new year. We must address the spirit of the age which is resisting the Spirit of God. We invited it in, we have to kick it out.

December 27, 2022 What God Said To Me

Episode 128: What God Said To Me Sometimes we feel compelled to put our latest favorite song in our playlist on continuous play. It impacts us, speaks to us, stirs us, or settles us. We just want to hear it over and over in a loop. In the late Fall of 2022, God spoke one sentence to me that startled me. It actually hurt a little at first, but I knew it was Him speaking. As weeks went on, I would hear this same word from the Lord on repeat in my spirit, and it soon took on the scent of an invitation from Him. His continuous loop kept playing in my head and it began to shape my approach to the coming year. In todayâ€™s episode, I share that word and leave it for you, the listener, to decide if it also might be a call from Him to you.

December 20, 2022 Dethroning Jealousy & Envy

Episode 127: Dethroning Jealousy & Envy Jerry Bridges once wrote a book called Respectable Sins. I read it in 2010 and was both blessed and convicted by what God had the author reveal. More and more, many Christians are realizing the widening gap between the sins we publicly loathe versus the sins we seem to privately tolerate. Why are some sins horrific to us while others seem to be moreâ€¦respectable. Todayâ€™s podcast lasers in on the two ugly twins of Jealousy & Envy. Not all of us understand the intensity with which Scripture addresses jealousy and envy. Do we even know the difference between the two? Have we searched our own hearts to see if either live there? Also, how can we get free from jealousy and envy if we find they have become a respectable, tolerable stronghold within us? All of this is addressed in this episode of Mavericks & Misfits.

December 13, 2022 It Is Not Hopeless

Episode 126: It Is Not Hopeless Some people were born to run marathons. Some were even born to win them. Most of us, however, prefer the short route and the quickest route from one point to another. Marathons just are not our thing, so we never enter the race. Upon the spiritual journey, we are not given a choice. The race of faith is long, and sometimes it is exhausting. We can be tempted to wonder if we will ever finish. We donâ€™t always feel like we are winning. From a very obscure verse in the book of Isaiah, we hear the voice of God encouraging us, motivating us and affirming us when we get tired. He does not mind us getting weary. He understands. What He loves is when the weariness does not rob us of our hope. Hear what He has to say to any and all runners who are feeling the weight of the marathon stretch.

December 6, 2022 Out... But Not In

Episode 125: Out... But Not In Most Christians know what it feels like to be stuck for a season. The in-between moments are not always easy to understand for those who are on their personal faith-journey. Others around us seem to motor on into a life that looks very different than what we are experiencing. Where are their roadblocks, detours, and delays? Some people may no longer believe that there is such a thing as a grand purpose for their lives. Others have never been told that God has an offer of destiny and purpose for them. They are simply content to be forgiven and headed to Heaven through faith in Christ. Yet, Jesus mentioned something beyond the mere reception of eternal life. He talked about the ABUNDANT life. What might that mean? In this episode, Jeff calls us to reawaken to the reality that there remains more for us. That means there remains so much more for you. What good is an escape if there isnâ€™t an entrance which follows? It could be that you got outâ€¦but that you have not yet gotten in.

November 22, 2022 What Happens When We Won't Forgive?

Episode 124: What Happens When We Won't Forgive? In the days wherein Christianity has been consistently presented as a relationship solely between God and an individual, we have all but lost the concept that to be a Christian is not only to become one with God, but to become one with all other Christians. The early Christians knew nothing of a faith that could reconcile them to God but not reconcile them with others. The reason why is because Jesus never allowed for the idea that we could be made right with God, yet still live in a state of fractured fellowship with each other. In fact, Jesus actually taught that if will do not forgive others, it is evidence that we have never truly experienced the forgiveness of God for ourselves. Using a striking illustration, Jesus shows why Christians must be constantly and proactively forgiving people. Our willingness to forgive everyone for everything is evidence that we have an understanding and proper value for just how forgiven we are by God. The forgiven will not withhold forgiveness.

November 15, 2022 The Impossible Love

Episode 123: The Impossible Love The ways, works and words of Jesus are repeatedlyÂ revealedÂ in Scripture in such a way that we feel compelled to both learn and emulate all that He says and does. Jesusâ€™Â sermons wereÂ sometimesÂ piercing because He went into the depths of the heart instead of justÂ dealingÂ with our externalÂ behaviors. He doesnâ€™t want us just to behave differently, He wants to transform our beliefs and our hearts so that, as we live like He did on earth, we do so with the same heart that He placed on display. One of His mostÂ challengingÂ messages centered on how we love those who haveÂ wrongedÂ us. HeÂ challengedÂ the way theÂ normalÂ culture taught people how to handle their enemies. He bringsÂ revelationÂ about how God expects us to handle those who oppose us today. We are KingdomÂ Citizens, but we cannot claim to be like Jesus until we gain victory over this extremely challenging issue of becoming like Jesus whenÂ dealingÂ with those who have treated us wrongly. In the end, the person who masters this teaching from Jesus enters a sustainedÂ maturityÂ andÂ victory that cannot otherwise be attained. Jesus does not budge on thisÂ expectationÂ of drawing out the impossible love from His followers.

November 8, 2022 Why Closed Doors?

Episode 122: Why Closed Doors? It can be a challenging thing when the zeal inside of you is not matched with opportunities outside of you. The closed-door season can become one of the most frustrating episodes in a believerâ€™s life if we do not respond properly to it. Why would God place a desire or a calling within us, but then not give us the opportunity to fulfill that desire and calling? This episode explores the reality of closed doors that find us when we were certain they would be opened doors. From one small set of verse sin Acts 16, we gain some incredibly valuable guidance about why God closes certain doors and why He opens other doors. It is not simply that these closed-door seasons are tests, they are actually a very practical part of how He leads His children into His very best plans for them.

November 1, 2022 Milky: Stunted Spiritual Growth

Episode 121: Milky: Stunted Spiritual Growth Perhaps one of the most eroding forces in the Church today is the issue of prolonged spiritual infancy and adolescence. If a fourteen-year-old was known to still be breast-feeding, we would all discern that there is something terribly wrong with both the child and his/her mother. Yet, in the Kingdom, we cannot deny the reality of multitudes of Christians who have never graduated from milk to meat. Solid spiritual food is not for them. They prefer to be cuddled and nursed by others. Sadly, there is no shortage of pastors, preachers and podcasters that are willing to provide constant milk. From three passages of Scripture, this episode shows us the intensity of Godâ€™s heart about those among His children who refuse to move on from being bottle-fed. Jeff Lyle passionately calls us to consider where we are in our own journey, and then to embrace the non-negotiable expectation of Jesus that we all pursue individual spiritual maturity. This episode is fiery!

October 25, 2022 Jeff & Amy Lyle Discuss End-Time Courage

Episdoe 120: Jeff & Amy Lyle Discuss End-Time Courage In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Amy Lyle joins her husband, Jeff, in the studio to discuss what we need to live with courage and endurance in the end of the age. Amy is soon to launch a podcast she is co-hosting with Lauren Atkinson, and this episode informs the Mavericks & misfits audience of this new venture and what listeners can expect from Lauren and Amy. Christian women are being released into Kingdom callings at higher levels than perhaps we have ever seen previously. Lauren and Amy want to speak into the hearts of Godâ€™s daughter sin their new podcast which begins in early November. Join Jeff and Amy in this episode to learn more about famine and finances as we approach the end of the age.

October 18, 2022 Four Essential Words You Must Receive

Episode 119: Four Essential Words You Must Receive Â From time to time, people will ask a spiritual leader what the keys are for a victorious, satisfying life that brings glory to God. Often this type of question comes from a newer convert or from a younger Christian who is now learning how to walk out their own faith. The question itself is GOOD because it indicates spiritual hunger. What may be lacking, however, is the awareness that there is no existing quick-fix answer to a spiritual life which is victorious, satisfying and brings God glory. Nonetheless, there is a beginning point for those who are in it for the long haul. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff offers us four words that he is convinced that all Christians must receive and embrace as an ongoing part of their faith journeys. While we never graduate from what is represented by these four words, we can surely begin and grow in the expression of them. Every Christian leader and servant that has helped us thus far has embraced the substance behind these words. You can too.

October 11, 2022 Beating Bitterness & Overcoming Offense

Episode 118: Beating Bitterness & Overcoming Offense Â Here is something that few will tell you: God will allow things in your life that are potentially offensive and embittering. That is right â€“ God will permit injustice, mistreatment, betrayal, abandonment, and denial into the lives of His children. And He does so on purpose! Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we unpack one of the strangest encounters anyone ever had with Jesus. When a woman comes to Him with an impossible need, Jesus seems to respond in a manner that is unfeeling, unmoved, and even unkind. What is the Master doing? He is empowering this woman to find that not even the most painful offense should be allowed to keep us from pressing into Jesus so that He can bring us the breakthroughs we long for.

October 4, 2022 Getting Promoted

Episode 117: Getting Promoted One of the intentional ways in which God moves involves Him facilitating an internal promotion within the Christianâ€™s spirit while not yet offering an external circumstance that matches it. God works and moves within His children but does not always immediately provide an outlet for all that good to flow. It is not uncommon in Scripture to find someone who is being blessed spiritually while suffering circumstantially. In the book of Genesis, we see this reality played out in the life of Joseph. His example offers us counsel and hope when we feel like a dammed-up river with no clear ability to flow. Eventually, for those who learn to properly value the internal promotion, the external promotion will arrive. In the delay, God is building the Christianâ€™s trust. If you have ever felt stuck, then Josephâ€™s life-story is going to help you.

September 27, 2022 Your Window Of Opportunity

Episode 116: Your Window Of Opportunity It is important that all of grasp some level of discernment about how God is presently moving among His people, and also what He is preparing in the unbelieving world. While none of us can fully fathom ALL that He is presently working, we can grasp enough particulars that empower us to align with His present works. This podcast episode is precisely geared to the individual listener, and it calls them to respond to a window of opportunity that is presently available. God opens up the opportunity for us, but many are standing on the wrong side of it, determining whether or not to walk through it while failing to note that it is closing. It is immeasurably important that they proactively step forward.

September 20, 2022 Our Ignorance At The Altar

Episode 115: Our Ignorance At The Altar When people come forward during altar calls at the end of Christian gatherings, most come seeking something which they need from the Lord. They come in faith. They often come in desperation. Some come forward, compelled by the Spirit of God to receive something for which He has given them hunger. We all come forward with a need, and there is nothing wrong with any of that. Â Unless we are coming in ignorance about what is required for what we want to receive. Â In this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, Jeff addresses the misconception that the best things in the Christian experience can come via an in-the-moment impartation from some spiritual leader. While impartation carries validity in the kingdom, most people ignorantly view it as some â€œholy zapâ€ that transmits something valuable to from one who has paid the cost to one who has never even considered the cost. This episode calls us to increase our hunger, consider the costs associated and then to pay the full price to receive all that God has for us.

September 13, 2022 Why Your Opposition Will Fail

Episode 114: Why Your Opposition Will Fail Christians living for the glory of God will be assigned territory to claim for His glory. Sometimes this territory is geographical. Sometimes it is relational. Sometimes it is cultural. Regardless of how the territory is defined and assigned by God, the Christian life is one of Kingdom advancement. Â And all of Hell will fight against that victory happening through you. This is why we need an impartation of holy, Spirit-filled confidence. Â In this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, Jeff challenges the listener to be emboldened in the will of God. What if you were called to believe that you were invincible as you walk out Godâ€™s will for your life? Joshua was told exactly that, and then he was able to impart that same truth to others. The result? Israel brought conquest to the promised territory wherein there were fortified cities, trained armies, and demonized opposition awaiting them. Joshua needed to hear from God at the onset that God would not let him fall. We need to hear the same thing, and todayâ€™s podcast is an ear-opener.

September 6, 2022 Anointed... But Waiting

Episode 113: Anointed... But Waiting A great moment in the Christianâ€™s life occurs when he or she understands what God has gifted and called them to do in the Kingdom. Everyone desires to know their purpose, and life takes on new dimension when God clearly communicates His desire for the direction of our lives. What God assigns to the believer He also anoints for the believer. He infuses the right gifting, the right spiritual resources, the right location, and the right recipients of what He will pour through us. Â Oh, yes, there is also this: He assigns the right timing. And that is where most of us will be tested. Most Christians receive their call and anointing from God before they receive their full release to what God has determined for them. Â In this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, we follow the anointing, calling, and establishing of King David. His own example carries rich lessons for those who know their Kingdom purpose, but who have not yet found themselves able to fulfill it. These lessons are crucial for all of us. If we cannot pass the present waiting test, we will likely not pass all the future tests which accompany our assignments. What do we do when we are in the challenging season of being anointed but waiting? King David helps us to find the answers.

August 30, 2022 Peace Instead Of Fear

Episode 112: Peace Instead Of Fear Most Christians would recognize the words of Jesus in John 14:27 where He promises His peace to all His followers. When He commands us to â€œlet not your hearts be troubledâ€, we tend to experience a sense of reassurance and comfort. We all know these words of Jesusâ€¦but are we actually obeying them? In this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, Jeff Lyle calls the listener to pinpoint the thing(s) that may be causing him/her to be living with a consistent thread of anxiety or fear in their lives. Then Jeff asks the listener to discern where it is that they turn to find relief or protection from what they fear. In the end, Jesus expects us to receive by faith the Peace that He promised each of us. It is not necessarily a feeling of peace in the beginning â€“ itâ€™s a confidence in His peace, that leads to the feelings of peace. Also included in this episode is a strong pastoral challenge for the listener to take ownership of limiting the voices that undermine the peace of Jesus in their lives.

August 23, 2022 The Unwavering Voices

Episode 111: The Unwavering Voices The Church in America has a speech impediment. It is not that Christians are not talking. In fact, we seem to talk quite a bit. We have the ability and vocabulary to speak. The issue is not in our ability to speak, it is in our discernment of what to actually say. The bold, biblical, loyal spokespeople for God seem to becoming more rare. Jeff Lyle shares in this podcast a charge to all the listeners to push back against this trend and to recapture the voice of confidence and conviction within the Church. Â Pastors, prophets and teachers have a call from God to speak His words in His way to all people assigned to them. The widescale prostitution of the call to preach has undermined the authority and relevance of the American Church. When Christians in the pews and seats presume to be authorized to tell the prophets and pastors what needs to be proclaimed, they trespass on what God has established as holy ground. Worse yet, when those prophets and pastors submit their callings to the demands of the people, they have committed an even worse sin. Listen to this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits and consider becoming one of the unwavering voices that refuses to cave in to the demands of a culture and Church which has lost its way.

August 16, 2022 Killing The Victim Mentality

Episode 110: Killing The Victim Mentality Christians typically live with one of two possible mindsets towards life: I am a victim who is helpless. I am a conqueror and overcomer. Our culture today feeds the instinct in most humans to deflect, blame others, shirk responsibility and avoid accountability for their lives. From media to government â€“and even some within the Church â€“there is a line of thinking that seeks to empower people to find excuses as to why they are not living a triumphant life. Once we adopt the belief that we are a perpetual victim of past or present forces, we embrace a lifestyle of defeat. Can this be consistent with what it means to be made alive by Jesus Christ and indwelt by the Holy Spirit? Absolutely not! In this episode of Mavericks and Misfits, Jeff powerfully calls us into accountability for our own lives and reasons with the listener concerning why they are empowered to live a life of victory, not victimhood. If you are comfortable in your misery, do not listen to this. If you want to escape your misery and defeat, listen to this episode...twice.

August 9, 2022 Deep Concerns About The Sinner's Prayer

Episode 109: Deep Concerns About The Sinner's Prayer For close to 80 years, most church attendees have been invited into an eternal relationship with God via the repeating of what is commonly known as the sinnerâ€™s prayer. The motivation behind using this prayer as a means to welcome sinnersinto the Kingdom is to honor the requirement of confessing Jesus as Lord with the mouth. The weakness of emphasizing this prayer is that it does nothing to gauge whetheror not the hearts of the people repeating the prayeris actually engaged while their mouths are moving.Jeff Lyleâ€™s opinion is that we are now reaping in the American church the heavy consequences of this longstanding, superficial mode of evangelism. This episode of #MavericksAndMisfits calls the listener to deeply consider everything elsethat the Bible communicates about what it means to be saved. An ignorance of these crucial scriptures has likely left countless people in churches wrongly convinced that they are in right standing with God. To date, this may be the most important episode of Mavericks and Misfits that has been released. Consider deeply what you hear.

August 2, 2022 Prophets In Hiding

Episode 108: Prophets In Hiding In Elijahâ€™s day, he once complained to God that he was the only true prophet. Have you ever wondered why he felt so alone and isolated in prophetic ministry during the days of wicked Ahab and Jezebel? Well, there may be a small clue in 1 Kings 18 as to whyElijah felt that way. In a discussion with another prophet named Obadiah, we learn that at least 100 prophets of God had been hiding together in a cave while Elijah put his neck on the line by doing the difficult task of confronting the wickedness in the land. You heard me right: while Ahab and Jezebel were ruining the nation, 100 of Godâ€™s prophets were playing it safe in a communal cave. In this episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, Jeff calls forth the prophets of this present generation. Too many are hiding out in one particular type of cave. What is this cave? Tune in and discover for yourself.

July 26, 2022 How The Baptist Guy Met The Holy Spirit

Episode 107: How The Baptist Guy Met The Holy Spirit In todayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfitsJeff shares two powerful accounts in his own story which God imparted to him in order tobring Jeff into a fuller experience and expression of what it means to be a Jesus-follower. These two encounters were separated by twelve years, but they worked together to free Jeff from religious bondage, denominational chains, and the fear of man. While these accounts are written of fully in Jeffâ€™s book â€œFiguring It Out As I Goâ€, people still frequently ask to hear it from Jeff himself. Todayâ€™s episode uses the accounts in the book and also some additionalbackground information to help the listener understand just what took place to usherJeff from the world of Baptist fundamentalism into the fullness of Spirit-baptized Kingdom living. In the end, all of us know for certain that God still has more for us as we follow Him toward the Second Coming of His Son.

July 19, 2022 Getting Free From The Fear Of Man

Episode 106: Getting Free From The Fear Of Man Most of us prefer to be liked than disliked. We would rather experience acceptance than rejection. Normal and reasonable is the desire for us to fit into a larger community and to be warmly received, secured, loved, and affirmed within that community. There is not necessarily anything wrong with caring what people think of us. Being controlled by what people think of us is a different issue altogether. That corrosive activity in our hearts is attached to what the bible calls â€œthe fear of man.â€ In todayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfitswe listen to the words of God Himself as He calls us all out of living to please other people or to gain their approval. This fear of man potential in us is not a personality issue â€“this is a soul-issue and we must overcome it through the Spirit. When people become too big to you, God will become small to you. He expects us to cooperate with Him to live entirely and permanently liberatedform the fear of manso that we can live joyfully and freely in the identity and purposeswhich He has assigned us.

July 12, 2022 Permission To Be & Do As God Says

Episode 105: Permission To Be & Do As God Says Well, this episode went quickly in an unexpected direction. While Jeff Lyle was planning to unpack some helpful verses on the fear of man, Holy Spirit appointed a different direction within the first two minutes of recording. In our present generation, a slimy ooze is hitting the church and contaminating our relationships, identity and mission. Sadly, fewer voices are rising up to give holy and dogmatic pushbackto this toxic atmosphere in the American church. Christianity is becoming something entirely different than what it has been for the previous 2,000 years. Where are the prophets? Where are the reformers? What has happened to the spiritual spine of the American Christian? Intodayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfits, the listener is called to examine two primary questions: 1) Who am I according to God? and 2) Why am I here? When the answers to these two questions are known by the Christian, no force of hell can stop them if they will make up their minds to unapologetically live out their days in God-ordained identity and activity. For some who listentoday, they will receive the permission from God that they have wondered too long if they actually have.

July 5, 2022 What Is Going On Inside Of You?

Episode 104: What Is Going On Inside Of You? There is a certain representation of Christianity that almost focuses exclusively focuses on our behavior. While the bible is clear on what it means to live outwardly in alignment with the heart of God and the ways of God, following Jesus by faith is not primarily about modifying our behavior. We are not a rules-driven people as the Church of Jesus Christ. Christian activity flows from Christian identity â€“and identity is internal. The spirit of religion seeks to modify external behavior with little to no regard for the internal atmosphere of a person. If we can understand that God works on us from the inside out, we will be better positioned to live lives externally that bring Him glory and bring us deep contentment. One clear verse from the writings of the Apostle Paul helps us to see the deep need to prioritize what is happening inside of us (our spirit) while remaining committed to honoring the Lord with external actions (our bodies). This need to diagnoseour own heartsand align our own personal spiritwith the Holy Spiritis the subject of todayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfits. Â

June 28, 2022 Straight Talk About Sexual Appetites

Episode 103: Straight Talk About Sexual Appetites Â Any of you who are 45 years and older can remember a time when the American culture had some form of sexual boundaries that were (at least loosely) framed by Scripture. We all recognize those days are over and now there exists an entrenched demonic representation about what is permissible to give expression to human sexual appetites. Frankly, Iâ€™m not sure that anything is off-limits anymore. Perhaps the last realm that is not fully currently embraced is pedophilia. That will likely shift in the next few years unless there is an explosion of revival in the land. This podcast takes a biblical look of human sexual appetites and what Scripture endorses as a God-blessed means of expressing our sexuality. Crucial for single people is the call from Godâ€™s Word to pursue marriage as one means of fighting sexual temptation. For the sexually bound and broken, there is much hope in the Gospel of Christ. For the deceived, there is also much warning. This taboo-talk is the subject of todayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfits.

June 21, 2022 Navigating Relational Conflict

Episode 102: Navigating Relational Conflict Â With the culture around us remaining in a state of being perpetually inflamed, how do Christians recognize and respond to the conflicts that they themselves cannot avoid? The Bible actually hasmuch to say about Christians in conflict. We are taught that the enemy always seeks to exploit relational conflicts. Jesus prescribed clear instructions about Christiansâ€™ personal conflicts with one another. Paul strongly commands us to fight hard for unity when conflicts arise. So, if we cannot avoid the fight, how do we learn to fight wisely and fairly? This is the subject of todayâ€™s episode of #MavericksAndMisfits.

June 14, 2022 Wimpy, Whiny, & Headed For Trouble

Episode 101: Wimpy, Whiny, & Headed For Trouble In American weddings the bride is typically delicate. She radiates a feminine beauty,and she is the focus of the entire wedding. Lace, flowers, stringed instruments, gently flickering candles...weddings are typically tender and delicate, and the bride is most sweet and precious element in the room.Not so, in the Kingdom. While His bride is beautiful and radiant, she is more of a warrior than a Cinderella. Or at least she is supposed to be.This episode of Mavericks & misfits challenges the listener to recognize that most Christians are entirely unprepared for what is coming. They are planning a wedding and forgetting the war which precedes it. Rather than giving a ton of instructionin this epeisode, Jeff Lyle sounds an alarm to help us extract ourselves from a self-centered, cultural quagmire and, instead, to stare at the King who is soonto mount his steed and return to conquer the cosmos. The Church in the West is entirely unprepared for what is coming, and we need to begin to sound the wake-up call so that nobody can deny that they were not summoned to attention before what is coming actually arrives. Listen to this one â€“not to be entertained. Listen with a heart ready to respond.

June 7, 2022 Jesus As The Ultimate Maverick

Episode 100: Jesus As The Ultimate Maverick This milestone 100th episode reminds us of the WHY behind the Mavericks & Misfits podcast. Religion might very well be the foremost deterrent to the current advance of the Kingdom. It certainly was in the days of Jesus. One might well-argue that it was manâ€™s religion that most inhibited the advance of the true Gospel during the days of the Apostles. Now, in the 21stCentury, the status-quo, shallow, narrow andlukewarm representation of the Church is undermining the very mission of Jesus through us. What is needed? The call is upon this generation to give holy pushback to unbiblical, Holy-Spirit-grieving teachings and practices that misrepresent the King. Jesuswas the ultimate maverick, and sometimes He calls and equips His followers to follow His example. This episode challenges all of us to self-evaluate, repent of anything we find that falls short of Godâ€™s authentic move, and then to reform (not reject!) thechurches in America.

May 31, 2022 The Dangers Of Elevation

Episode 99: The Dangers Of Elevation Sometimes, God chooses to promote a young person. It is uncommon, but not unheard of. God looks throughout the earth and bypasses the older and seasoned candidates. He skips the halls of academia. He does not look toward the powerful and proven. In Certain moments, God lets His eyes rest upon a spiritually scrawny adolescent and declares that this is the person whom He will use. It can be a glorious thing to behold â€“when a young man or women is chosen by the Almighty for an important task. Sometimes, if that young person does not remain under the guidance of an older and wiser believer, disaster can strike. This is what occurred with the young man who is the subject of todayâ€™s podcast. We will candidly discuss the Dangers of Elevation.

May 24, 2022 Women In Ministry - That One Big Verse

Episode 98: Women In Ministry - That One Big Verse For nearly all who believe that Scripture forbids women in the Kingdom from preaching, teaching men and holding positions of authority and leadership, the go-to verse is 1 Timothy 2:12. On a surface reading, it is understandable how they might reach this conclusion. But what was the apostle Paul actually communicating in this chapter? What was he writing before he wrote verses 11 & 12? Was he really mandating a universal prohibition against all women in every generation of the Church age from preaching and leading? After having established a clear foundation for the roles of Christian women in ministry in the previous two podcast episodes, Jeff now tackles 1 Timothy 2:12, and unpacks the molecular understanding of this highly debated set of verses. Before anyone reaches a firm position against women teaching and leading in the Church, they owe themselves an opportunity to evaluate in detail this cornerstone verse of the complementarian position which denies Godâ€™s daughters the opportunity to exercise preaching and leading gifts in the Church. Too much hinges on this topic for any of us to lazily glance at this verse. We must go deep to properly understand that what appears to say one thing on the surface is not actually what was originally communicated to Paul from Holy Spirit.

May 17, 2022 Women In Ministry - Exposing The Inconsistency

Episode 97: Women In Ministry - Exposing The Inconsistency This is the episode where we really dive down into the nitty-gritty of the hot-button bible verses which are always the ones most strongly used to deny that women can serve in places of authority in the Church. 1 Timothy 2:11-12, when taken alone from the rest of the bible, would certainly seem to prohibit women from preaching, teaching and leading in the Kingdom. But that is the issue: we cannot take these verses alone, divorcing them from the rest of Scripture. This podcast will accomplish two things: Â To empower those who have been intimidated and/or confused 1 Timothy 2:11-12 to begin to better understand them (more will be said on these verses in our next episode). Â To expose the flagrant inconsistency of those who interpret 1 Timothy 2:11-12 with an unquestioned strictness while, at the same time, failing to apply that same interpretive lens to many other places in 1 Timothy and other parts of the New Testament. You will have to explain yourselves. Â Listen carefully, take notes if you can, and letâ€™s begin to take a deep look at the two verses that are used as the presumably solid foundation to forbid women from teaching, preaching and leading in Godâ€™s Kingdom. Â More free video, audio and social media resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 10, 2022 Women In Ministry - End Of The Age Outpouring

Episode 96: Women In Ministry - End Of The Age Outpouring In our series of podcasts on Women in Ministry, we must take an in-depth look at a handful of very important bible passages. Two of those are fond in Joel 2 and Acts 2. These passages contain an undeniable description from both the Old and New Testaments concerning what God promised to do at the end of the age. Because we are presently living in that time period, it is crucial that we pay attention to how God describes what He himself will facilitate during those years. God declares that an outpouring of the Spirit will be continuing, and that the consequence of that continual outpouring will be that His daughters will be called and empowered to speak forth His truth. This may be the single most influential set of verses that shape Jeff Lyleâ€™s personal and theological views on what women will be doing throughout the entirety of the New Testament Church age. If we gloss over these verses, we will find ourselves in error. If we consider them deeply, we will be properly equipped to interpret other important verses which weigh in on this topic of what women can and cannot do in the Church. Â More free video, audio and social media resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 3, 2022 Women In Ministry - The Big Picture

Episode 95: Women in Ministry - The Big Picture Â So, where exactly do the daughters of God fit in New Testament Kingdom ministry? Does God welcome Christian women to do anything and everything that their brothers are assigned to do? What are we to make of the hot-button terms of egalitarian and complementarian? As Jeff begins to unpack this series of podcasts on the never-ending debate about women in ministry, he invites us to calm down, evict emotionalism on the topic and consider the big picture of what Godâ€™s Word declares about His use of His own daughters for His glory. From the Old Testament and into the New, we must learn what Scripture actually presents about our unchanged & unchanging Godâ€™s willingness to elevate His daughters to lead, speak and serve for His purposes. If we can intentionally consider these issues, we will be far better equipped to consider the two go-to passages for those who exclude women from leading and speaking in the Church. We all have opinions on this subject, but what does the whole of Scripture truly reveal about how God uses women in ministry? Â More free video, audio and social media resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

April 26, 2022 Identity, Personality & Purpose

After receiving a heartfelt email from a listener who felt completely stuck and unfulfilled in life, Jeff felt the need to talk about the three non-negotiable components we all need for the Christian life to make sense. This is what he calls the whole enchilada: identity, personality, and purpose. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we hear from Jeff as a bit of a life-coach who exposes where so many of us go wrong as Jesus followers. To get started on knowing who you are in Christ, how you are in the personality God has given you, and why you are in the God-assigned purpose of your life, you must come to a place where you refuse to go another day without pursuing these three things. Purpose flows from identity. Some Christians immediately seek their purpose before even stopping to consider their identity. That is why many remain stuck: because God doesnâ€™t reveal purpose to those who donâ€™t have identity. This podcast episode will help the surrendered listener begin to get unstuck and begin flowing in the direction which results in peace, hope, rest and purpose.

April 19, 2022 Missing Godâ€™s Timing

On a small handful of occasions in the Gospels, we are told that Jesus wept. We all know about Him weeping outside the tomb of Lazarus. Most people are not as familiar with the occasion when Jesus wept over an entire city. He literally lamented over them. Why did He do so? Because the people there missed the timing of God visiting them with Heavenâ€™s very best offer. God offered them Jesus. And they said NO. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff releases a strong prophetic exhortation to the listener to ensure that they are not missing out on what God is presently doing around them. God makes seasonal offers for us to experience Him in unusual ways. Outpourings of power, gifts, resources and opportunities are offered to Godâ€™s people at various levels at various times. We cannot afford to be ignorant of how we must be positioned both to recognize and receive such offers from Heaven. This episode helps up to wake up and step up to receive the pears that God is presently offering us.

April 14, 2022 Bonus: Women In Ministry

In this shortened episode, Jeff Lyle responds to a listenerâ€™s email asking Jeffâ€™s views on women in ministry. The listener wants to know what to make of passages which seem to preclude women from leadership and teaching in the church. Jeff offers a very broad introduction to the topic as a lead-in to several episodes that will be released after this introductory podcast. Also, Jeff spotlightâ€™s his wife, Amyâ€™s, spiritual mothing & teaching ministry which recently launched. Godâ€™s daughters are actually the backbone of the ministry. If they disappear, most of the quality ministry in the Kingdom would come to a grinding halt. Itâ€™s time to examine in depth what the bible teaches about women in ministry. This first episode will sketch out what to expect in the episodes which follow. Â To learn more about Amy Lyleâ€™s mentoring of Godâ€™s daughters ministry, visit spiritual-mama.com

April 12, 2022 Pushing Back on the Spirit of Religion

We hear the phrase â€œspirit of religionâ€ quite frequently these days. Nobody has a clear-cut consensus on what this phrase actually defines. It is a bit of an unformed awareness that a person, a creed, a church or a movement is striving to assert something that appears like a Kingdom value, but actually is not. The spirit of religion is easy to see in those we differ with, but it is not always as quickly to recognized in ourselves or those with whom we run in Godâ€™s Kingdom. Jesus once encountered a group of men who approached Him in this ugly spirit. What He said to them will help us understand the two primary components which will always be present in any expression of the religious spirit. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we take an intense look at the foundational issues of the religious spirit. We are not called to appease the religious spirit. We must oppose it. We must expose it and, while continuing to operate in the Holy Spirit as we challenge those who are under the influence of the religious spirit, we are not called to play nice. Jesus helps us know what to say and how to say it.

April 5, 2022 Why 5-Fold Ministry?

So, who is in charge of the church you attend? Where does the buck stop? Who is running the show? We know that Scripture validates human authority and leadership in the Church. There is consequently a human leader or group of human leaders who should be installed and recognized in every local church. But does the Bible teach that this singular human leader is the Pastor and that this person is to be responsible for everything. Vision-casting, preaching, winning the lost, discipling new converts, administrating the various ministries and taking care of each congregant - does all of this heavy load fall to the Pastor? Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff begins a series of lessons on what is commonly called 5-Fold Ministry from Ephesians 4:11-15. God never intended one individual to lead a local church. Because the Church in America has failed to embrace godâ€™s design for church leadership and functionality, the congregants are lopsided, misguided and frustrated at times. And the Pastors? They are burning out under the weight of unbiblical expectation to be the one-stop-shop for church leadership. This podcast episode helps us to see a better way - Godâ€™s way! Additional resources are available at org

March 29, 2022 Getting Radical About Spiritual Growth

Karen Smith, President of Kineo Ministry Training Center declares, â€œYou are the steward of your own edification.â€ She is 100% correct. No singular spiritual leader in a church or anywhere in the kingdom can bring you into fulness of knowing God. To be a true disciple of Jesus Christ requires initiative, and part of that initiative is a pursuit of spiritual growth through knowing Him and His written Word. A high appetite for Scripture will usually result in a higher elevation of spiritual growth as a follower of Christ. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff briefly explains the danger sin churches when they ignore or neglect the biblical framework of 5-Fold Ministry found in Ephesians chapter 4. He then picots to discuss the office of teacher and the high value and need for teachers to emerge in the Kingdom at this hour. How can you take ownership of your own edification? By finding teachers who prioritize the authority of the written Word of God, and the necessity of the spirit of God. At the end of this episode, Jeff invites you to take advantage of something he has recently said yes to in order to help Christians become radical about their own spiritual growth. Additional resources are available at org

March 22, 2022 Shooting Yourself in the Soul

We are all familiar with the phrase â€œshooting yourself in the foot.â€ This phrase describes a self-inflicted wound that occurs through recklessness, foolishness or ignorance. It refers to some action that could have been avoided which causes us harm by our doing. Did you know that there is one clear activity described all throughout the Bible that warns us of wounds to our own soul when we do it? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff imports both humor and heat when dealing with the pandemic of Christians operating in a reckless manner with their words. Lying, gossip, slander, word-curses, profanity and defeatism can stream forth from our mouths without so much as a second thought. The Psalmist once asked God to set a guard over his lips. God will help us for sure, but the whole of Scripture actually places an intense responsibility on the children of God to guard their own speech patterns. In the end, Jesus taught we will give an account for all our words. Before that ever occurs, we should know that our words either bring life or death when we speak. Sometimes, careless words result in us shooting ourselves in the soul. Additional resources are available at org

March 17, 2022 Being Right The Wrong Way

Do you think you are right most of the time? Well, if you are a committed follower of Jesus, then your answer should be YES. The only other possibility is that you believe that you are wrong most of the time, and that would not be an honest confession from anyone who is being led by Jesus in this life. Yet, do you know that it is common for Christians to be right in discussions, debates, politics, theology and issues of morality, but still be wrong in how they operate? It happens all the time, and we need to remedy this problem. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff breaks down three rarely-preached verses from Paulâ€™s letter to Timothy to spotlight the intense ways God commands us to operate when we are in conflict with anyone who is truly wrong in their positions. We can have the facts on our side while actually having God oppose us. What is the missing ingredient that empowers us to do the right thing in the right way? Knowing the answer to this question will change the trajectory of your Christian life and open up a wealth of breakthrough for you as you live out your representation of Jesus. Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 8, 2022 Obeying Human authority - Must I?

An email from a listener sincerely asked Jeff, â€œSince I have the Holy Spirit, why do I have to obey the human leaders in my church?â€ More than just this one listener has wondered about this. Is it not risky to submit our spiritual lives to the leadership of someone else? If we are going to do so, what are the non-negotiables that must be found in that leader? What if I disagree with my leaders? Is the local church even a legitimate expression of modern-day Christianity? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff highlights two verses of Scripture to unpack our call to follow God-appointed leaders in our churches. Without pulling any punches, he also punctuates the strict accountability to which God holds all leaders. Obedience and submission to church leadership is actually connected to our relational trust with God Himself. No doubt, it is not a matter of if you will disagree with your leaders, but when. We all need to embrace what the bible reveals about leaders and followers in the Kingdom of God. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 1, 2022 The Pain of Sanctification

Would you agree that the expression of Christianity in America is less than awesome? When we survey the depth of commitment, the breadth of influence, the height of power in the American Church, what do we conclude? Honest observers would need to confess that we are coming up beneath the offer of God in all areas of what it means to be a representation of Jesus Christ in our generation. What is the primary issue that might be holding us back? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff passionately calls the listener to embrace the model of Christian living that Paul put forth in his writings. Returning to an embrace of the soldier and athlete metaphor will help present-day Christians own the calling upon their individual lives. Waiting for God to â€œmake it happenâ€ is nothing more than a wholesale copout and cloak for laziness and indecision. He is waiting for us! There is a price that must be paid, a cost that must be accepted and a pain that must be endured. Those who live with this mindset will be among the Christians who are entrusted with the stewardship of coming revival. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 22, 2022 Why Christians Burn Out & How To Fix It

There is no avoiding the reality that every Christian is called, equipped, and expected to serve God. We do this by serving people. God needs no service Himself. He commissions each of us to serve Him by serving other people. This service involves time, energy, money, commitment, and intentionality. But what do we do when serving God becomes wearisome? When ministry and servanthood become a burden and our minds, bodies and emotions hit a breaking point, what has happened? Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff uses a singular verse from the New Testament to reveal the foundation for all burnout. Weaving in his own testimony from a season of burnout, he then offers guidance in how to avoid it and how to be delivered from it. Most serious Christians can run the risk of burning out. This is not the plan of God for His children. Itâ€™s on us to defeat it. Â Â Topics: cancer, healing, sickness, disease, miracles, faith, trust, intimacy with Christ, demonic attack, chemo, radiation, depression, victory, deliverance, freedom, power Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 15, 2022 Allergic to Truth

Most of us are familiar with Jesusâ€™ decree that those who worship God must worship Him in Spirit and Truth. Have you ever taken the time to consider what He meant? What does it mean to worship the God of the Bible in Spirit? What was Jesus saying when He mandated that we worship God in Truth? By the wayâ€¦what exactly is the Truth that Jesus was referring to? Well, we certainly need to figure this out since it seems that it was of extreme importance to the One who saved us. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we will explore the urgent need of the hour for all believers to become people who understand, believe and live according to Godâ€™s written Word. Making a particular plea to Charismatic Christians to treasure theology, doctrine and unchanging truth, Jeff exposes the dangers of our failing to do so. As we approach the end of the age, our commitment to what the Bible teaches will be the singular make-or-break issue that determines the value of our lives and the placement of our eternity. Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 8, 2022 Fear of God vs. Living Afraid of God

It never occurred to Jeff Lyle that a simple Facebook post would generate so much drama. Maybe he was naÃ¯ve, but he never thought that the following statement would trigger so many. Does it trigger you? Â â€œYou can obey a God of whom you are afraid. But you cannot worship a God of whom you are afraid.â€ Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, we break down the vast difference between the theological truth of â€œthe fear of the Lordâ€ versus the unbiblical relational possibility of living afraid of God. What does the actual fear of the Lord mean? How does that sometimes become a slavish dread of God due to our failure to understand it? Why are we free from living in a state of dread of God? The entire Christian experience can be completely altered depending on how each Christian grasps what the fear of the Lord actually means.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 1, 2022 The Coming Delusion - PART 2

Note: This is part 2 of 2 in this podcast mini-series. Please listen to part 1 first. Have you ever heard of the Coming Delusion? When Christians speak of this aspect of future events, they are usually referencing what is written by the Apostle Paul in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2. Many of those Christians make the mistake of making the Coming Delusion synonymous the great deception of the Antichrist and/or the great apostasy from the professing church at the end of the age. These things are not exactly the same, and it is important to our understanding of the End Times that we understand how they different but also interconnected. In this episode, Jeff shares the second of a two-part podcast series on the subject of the Coming Delusion. Who sends it? Who falls prey to it? Who escapes it? Are we close? What precisely will be the primary cornerstone of the Antichristâ€™s deception? How will all of unredeemed humanity come to believe that he is worthy to be worshipped as a god? What will happen to so completely overhaul peopleâ€™s religious beliefs so that they abandon them all and believe the antichrist? Andâ€¦what might UFOâ€™s have to do with all of this? Topics: UFOâ€™s, alien life, truth, deception, age of reason, politics, Antichrist, Godâ€™s Word, false teachers, deconstruction of the faith, apostasy, enduring unto the end Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

January 25, 2022 The Coming Delusion - PART 1

Have you ever heard of the Coming Delusion? When Christians speak of this aspect of future events, they are usually referencing what is written by the Apostle Paul in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2. Many of those Christians make the mistake of making the Coming Delusion synonymous the great deception of the Antichrist and/or the great apostasy from the professing church at the end of the age. These things are not exactly the same, and it is important to our understanding of the End Times that we understand how thye different but also interconnected. In this episode, Jeff shares the first of a two-part podcast series on the subject of the Coming Delusion. Who sends it? Who falls prey to it? Who escapes it? Are we close? Listen closely and you will learn in this episode what must precede the Coming Delusion. In part two, you will learn the specifics of it when it eventually comes. Topics: truth, deception, age of reason, politics, Antichrist, Godâ€™s Word, false teachers, deconstruction of the faith, apostasy, enduring unto the end Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

January 18, 2022 Jesus & The Divisive Spirit

Jesus-followers are often known for their inability to walk in peace and harmony with others. Letâ€™s be truthful: we can be just as petty and divisive as non-Christians (maybe more so?). Ego, judgmentalism, lovelessness and tribalism are too frequently displayed by those who say they stay in step with the Son of God. In one short passage in Luke 9, we witness Jesusâ€™ closest followers living out the divisive spirit. We can learn much by how Jesus responds to their immature and unkind ways. Before pointing a finger at them, we do well to take a look in the spiritual mirror to learn if the same things are lurking in our own hearts. Topics: religious spirit, denominationalism, pride, treatment of unbelievers, competitive spirit, envy, jealousy, kindness, grace, preferring others Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

January 11, 2022 What Are You Doing With Your Life?

Itâ€™s already a new year and the clock is ticking quickly into a calendar that never stops turning its pages. We are getting closer and closer to the end of things as we have known them. The climactic changes that usher in the end of days is close. This all means that we should be living with increased urgency to make sure our lives are counting for something. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff lays aside what he had planned to share and inters into a prophetic exhortation to all listeners, calling each one to reject excuses, presumptions, laziness, and fear as we move into what will be a transformational year. Sometimes we need an outside voice telling us that we were made for more. Sometimes we also need a voice reminding us that Jesus is worth anything and everything that we can release in faith. Itâ€™s time for some spiritual octane to move in the engine of the American Church. Yesterdayâ€™s advance is over. It is a brand-new day requiring brand new levels of trust and commitment. Topics: warfare, imaginations, ideas, sloppy prophecy, immature prophets, impatient prophets, finding a mate, finding a ministry, pastors and leaders, holy power Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

January 4, 2022 Is That Godâ€™s Voice Or My Voice?

The Church needs to regain a grip of discerning whether or not God is speaking to us or whether we are speaking to ourselves. Prophetic Ministry among Charismatics needs a mini-reformation. We need to clean up things a bit. We cannot afford to go on speaking prophetically in the name of Jesusâ€¦only to find out that we were communicating our own ideas, imaginations, feelings and thoughts. God is speaking for sure, but it seems that He is not being heard over the constant chatter we ourselves are coming up with. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff starts off 2022 with a hard-hitting challenge to the Church to know the difference between our own voice and the voice of God. Even our best thoughts should not be allowed to have Godâ€™s name attached to them if He did not actually speak these things to us. Not every dream is God speaking. Not every visionary idea is sourced in the Lord. When God speaks â€“ we must share it. When God is silent, we must be patient to wait until he begins to speak. Much is on the line in this area. We must do better. Topics: warfare, imaginations, ideas, sloppy prophecy, immature prophets, impatient prophets, finding a mate, finding a ministry, pastors and leaders, holy power Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

December 28, 2021 Running Uphill Against Giants

So, a brand-new year is upon us once again. How are you feeling after the back-to-back intensity of 2020 and 2021? Maybe 2022 will be easier. Maybe this will be the year of your breakthrough. Maybe things will finally start going your way. But what if it isnâ€™t like that at all? What if there is more waiting? More warring? If so, then you will need to listen intently to this episode of Mavericks and Misfits as we gain extreme motivation and determination from an unlikely source. Sometimes, when God has brought us right up to the edge of our breakthrough and the fulness of His purposes for us, the last leg of the race requires us to run uphill toward giants. For those who lean into the Holy Spirit for wisdom, strength and endurance, there is something glorious awaiting them at the top of the climb. Â In this episode, Jeff pulls no punches as he boldly challenges the listener to consider their current attitude and to get reacquainted with the determination to embrace nothing less than the full victory that God has for them. Topics: comfort, ease, complaint, victory, courage, destiny, purpose, faith, waiting on God, warring in the Spirit, breakthrough, whining, quitters, spiritual immaturity, social media deception, ministry fakes Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

December 21, 2021 How to Rightly Address Your Weakness

Nobody signed up to become weaker this year. Nobody loves staring in a spiritual mirror and being unable to deny what is lacking in our own personal walk with Jesus. Nobody naturally rejoices in the things which seemingly hold them back from victory, power and breakthrough. No, we all prefer to be strong. We do not like becoming dependent. We all hate to lose. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff spotlights the testimonies of Peter, John the Baptizer and Paul in the arena of how each man dealt with his battle with personal weakness. From their responses, we can learn how to avoid the ditches of extremes when our personal weaknesses are exposed. From their battles that are laid out in Scripture, we learn the pathway to breakthrough via the gate of personal weakness. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

December 14, 2021 Prophetic Encouragement About Christmas

In America, Christmas time is almost exclusively sentimental. We meet. We greet. We eat. We spend. We give. We receive. Decorations are pretty and the Christmas songs are sweet. Only among Christians is the actual meaning behind this holiday kept in focus. Sadly, for most in America, Christmas has lost its biblical substance and prophetic edge. Yet, when we read the words of the Apostle Paul in Galatians 4, the enormity of Godâ€™s prophetic pop behind the incarnation of the Son of God can stun us. In this message, we move right past shallow sentimentality and find ourselves squarely rooted in the divine plan of the ages. Why did Jesus come when He did? What does the phrase â€œfullness of timeâ€ mean? Should we consider the first coming of Christ and dare not consider ahis second coming? This is our prophetic glimpse at Christmas. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks us through Galatians 4:4-7 to help us reconnect with the powerful prophetic punch behind the first coming of Jesus Christ. The Christmas spirit is the spirit of prophecy, the Spirit of God.

December 7, 2021 How Cancer Became My Servant

In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff shares his personal testimony of his battle with cancer from late 2019 into late 2020. Why didnâ€™t God heal him via a miracle? Is the fact that God healed him through medicine a cop-out? Jeff wrestled with these issues and the expectation from others about how he and his family should handle the approach t fight this dreaded disease. For a few days during the fight, it did not seem worth it. In the end, Jeff prevailed and learned some incredible things about Jesus during the fight. Oh yes - also - Jeff learned how god would make cancer to become Jeffâ€™s servant. Â Topics: cancer, healing, sickness, disease, miracles, faith, trust, intimacy with Christ, demonic attack, chemo, radiation, depression, victory, deliverance, freedom, power Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

November 30, 2021 Dagon Versus Yahweh

God has never been in actual fight. He has been opposed, but in the sense of a fight including an uncertainty of outcome, God knows nothing of the sort. In the Old Testament, a frequent foe of Israel was the Philistines. These barbarian pagans had adopted as their national deity a demonic god called Dagon. In a season wherein God was chastising Israel for sin, He allowed the Philistines to win a victory that resulted in them thinking that Dagon was more powerful than Yahweh. In an incredibly short time, Yahweh removed all doubt and made an example of Dagon and his followers. The story is exhilarating. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff reminds the Church that idols and demonic gods of our own culture sometimes deceive their worshipers to think the God of the Christian was retired and fled away. This is the season wherein we will see Jesus - Yahweh in human flesh! - put down modern idols just like His Father did in the days of Dagon. Â Topics: GLORY, crushing the serpent, Heavenâ€™s throne, Dagon, Jesus Christ, idolatry, demons, pagan worship, repentance Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

November 23, 2021 Love That Bleeds

What kind of love are you releasing? It is not enough for us to assume that we are loving Christians - we need to work to discern at the specific type of love which comes off from us in our daily walks. From a simple verse in First Peter, we can discover that being saved is intended to being connected to a stream of love coming off from our lives. This is not a mushy-gushy love. It is a love that bleeds. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff testifies about his end-of-the-year prayer priority to receive a fuller baptism of love from the Father. Sharing his own testimony of being a love-stutterer, Jeff invites the listener to join him in pressing into the Lord for a greater capacity to live in a fuller expression fo Godâ€™s love toward others. Listen and be both motivated and challenged. Topics: conditional love, brotherly love, safe love, agape love, baptism of love, struggling to love the unlovable, gifts of the Spirit, fruit of the Spirit, withholding love Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

November 16, 2021 Occasional Struggle Vs. Habitual Sin

Where is the line drawn between a true Christian who occasionally battles a particular sin versus a religiously Christianized person who is bound in their habitual sin? One is born again, one isnâ€™t. Both think that they are. Yet, the Scripture speaks plainly about our victory over sin being one of the clearest evidences of true salvation. What should we make of those who profess Jesus as Lord, but continue to live in unbroken patterns of sin? Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks us through First John chapter two as he shares his won testimony about being deceived concerning his own sin. God is merciful and will not leave us unchallenged about this area. He doesnâ€™t want to terrify us about sin, He wants to fully deliver us from its power. This podcast episode takes a hard-hitting look at the spirit of the age which actually tries to make a place for unrepentant sin to continue in the lives of those who say they belong to Jesus. Â Topics: sin, victory, deception, pet-sins, habitual sin, stubborn sins, deliverance, freedom, power Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

November 9, 2021 Getting Spiritual Freedom

Do you still believe that God can set you completely free? Many Christians are okay with trudging their way through life, only believing in powerful victory at the point in which they enter Heaven. Is that really what Jesus died for â€“ a grind on earth until we die? No! God the Spirit lives in us, in part, to manifest victory, breakthrough and growing freedom while we are alive on earth. We are not salves to our flesh. The devil has no true authority over us. Because we are declared free in Christ, we should be living in true spiritual freedom.
In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff exposes doors that we open which serve to undermine the freedom which we have in Jesus Christ. God has granted the victory, but we actually have the potential to live in ways that counteract the freedom which He offers us. How can we live in such a way where we cooperate with the Holy Spirit instead of opposing His ways and works. This episode calls us to take ownership of our spiritual freedom. Â Topics: flesh, crucifying the flesh, music, movies, media, friends, Bible, worship, literature, inner man, temptation, born again, warfare, breakthrough, desperation, crucify the flesh, who are you running with? Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

November 2, 2021 Killing Recurring Sin

Any honest Christian will admit that somewhere along the line they have encountered a stubborn issue in their lives in which it is/was difficult to experience lasting victory. We have weaknesses that are unique to us. Some of us struggle in one particular area even though we have total breakthrough in a hundred other areas. What are we to make of the occasional reality that a certain sin recurs in our lives? Words, attitudes and actions that do not align with Godâ€™s Word and ways have to go â€“ but what are we to do when they donâ€˜t?
In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks the listener through romans Chapter 7 wherein
Paul explains what happens in our lives when we are struggling with a recurring sin. Many Christians make the mistake of learning to live with recurring sin. Others defeatedly succumb to the despair that they will never get free. But why des recurring sin even happen in the lives of those who are born again? This podcast explains what all is in play and how we can get free. Â Topics: flesh, inner man, temptation, born again, warfare, breakthrough, desperation, crucify the flesh Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

October 26, 2021 Do We Truly Want Revival?

We sing about it. We pray for it. We fast toward it. Prophets promise it. Teachers document what it looks like from past occurrences. Pastors strategize to lead their flocks into it. Â EVEYRONE WANTS REVIVAL! Or do we? Â Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff explains what true revival from Heaven will look like when it hits the Church. Without pulling any punches, he calls us to check our presumptions at the door and to go far beyond our thimble-sized ideas of what revival will actually look like. In the end, there is one non-negotiable component of revival that causes Jeff to be skeptical if the Church really wants God to release revival to us. You can listen and then decide for yourself. Topics: holy hunger, healings, North Georgia Revival, Dawsonville, miracles, status-quo Christianity, conservativism, Charismatics, pride, control, presumptions, holy chaos Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

October 19, 2021 Before Revival Comes

Most everyone in the prophetic community believes that a great revival will come before Jesus returns to the earth. Among those who believe so, there is a large number of voices that believe we are getting very close. What Christian would not want to see true Holy Spirit revival cover the earth like the waters of the sea? God is greatly glorified in revival, and we all want it. But, in Heavenâ€™s throneroom, there is no such thing as cheap revival. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff offers the listener seven necessary components for each of us to position ourselves to experience revival. A casual, take-it-or-leave-it attitude towards revival will never permit any of us to experience the outpouring which God will release. Though He is sovereign, the release of outpouring is connected to several things about which we have a personal role to play. This episode allows us to examine our hearts, our lifestyles, our relationships and our views of the Word to see if we are positioned to experience the coming revival. Â Â Topics: spiritual hunger, compromised values, the written Word, toxic relationships, unholy alliances, North Georgia Revival, healings, deliverances, salvations, repentance, mourning, Godâ€™s stunning grace Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

October 12, 2021 Introverted and Isolated Are Not Synonyms

What does an unknown radio host from the late 1970â€™s have in common with two ancient tribes of the people of Israel? It might be faint, but there is a connecting line between them. Here is a hint: God does not desire any of His children to live out their lives in safe, cozy and comfortable isolation. The place of promise is offered to those who refuse to settle and join in the risk-taking commitment to inherit the very best God has for us as a community of believers. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff unpacks an obscure conversation between Moses and the leaders of two withdrawing tribes in Israel. We see in todayâ€™s podcast that our willingness to serve and sacrifice alongside of other believers is a great momentum builder for Godâ€™s work. There are easy places which call our names. There are opportunities that would serve to enrich us personally, but would not serve the greater Kingdom cause. We have to put to death our appetites for ease and stick shoulder to shoulder with all other believers who are counting the cost and staying in the mission to ensure it is accomplished for Godâ€™s glory. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

October 5, 2021 Doing the Work of God in the Flesh

None of us wants to fail. We are super dependent upon Godâ€™s grace to be applied when we do stumble in our words, thoughts and actions. It is awesome to rest in the fact that when we sin, Godâ€™s grace will abound above our sin and get between us and the ultimate penalty. Yet, there is a clear understanding from Scripture that we often reap what we sow. It disheartens many Jesus-followers when they learn that sometimes there are unavoidable consequences for our actions. Moses learned that a long time ago. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff guides the listeners through a troubling moment in the leadership of Moses. God had used this man for amazing breakthrough. Toward the end of Mosesâ€™ ministry, however, he did some of Godâ€™s work in the power of the flesh and it cost him. What can we learn about our own callings, ministry and influence from this example? How are we finishing our race if it ended in this season? Holy Spirit will use this episode to stir you within in to double down and ensure that you fulfill the calling given to you by God. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

September 28, 2021 God Is Bringing People Out of the Spirit of Fear

Sometimes strong people experience shaken faith. If you have never had your faith rattled for even a short time, then you likely are not attempting to do much for the glory of God in your life. When we consider that God is always stretching our faith to enlarge our trust-muscle, we should not be surprised that we frequently find ourselves in over our heads. Add to this the reality of intense spiritual warfare from the enemy, plus the inherent weaknesses of our flesh, then it is reasonable to conclude that sometimes strong Christians can have their faith shaken. Yet, the Lord will never leave us in the place of shaking. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff harnesses a moment in the life of Elijah to remind us that God meets those struggling with fear where they are, asks some tough questions, and then begins to graciously lead them from our dark cave of doubt and distrust back into the fulness of confidence in Him and His plans for our lives. Shaken faith is to become strengthened faith. If we donâ€™t quit in the cave, this will become our reality. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

September 21, 2021 Why Prayers Often Go Unanswered

There are some intensely bold statements in the bible about the effective power of our prayers. Godâ€™s Word calls Christians to pray consistently with the expectation of Him answering our prayers and creating shifts according to what we are praying. There is no mistaking that prayer is one of the most vital tools and gifts that exists in the Church. Why then do our prayers sometimes go unanswered? What are we to make of those undeniable moments when something we have been praying into fails to come to pass? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks the listener through one of the primary reasons why God sometimes does not respond favorably to the things for which we are praying. He is no Genie in a bottle that pops out to grant our every wish and whim. There is the clear reality that sometimes we are asking for good things from God and He does not move in our favor. What is the reason for this? Sometimes it is the hardest answer for us to hear. But we NEED to hear it in this season. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

September 14, 2021 Is Falling Out In the Spirit Legitimate?

Many who come from a denominational version of Christianity were caught off guard the first time they witnessed someone falling out in a Charismatic worship gathering. Because of their lack of exposure to such things, they found themselves confused when they observed someone falling to the ground and remaining there, presumably under the weight of the presence of the Lord. Even among those who have been reared in Charismatic/Pentecostal representations of Christianity there are some who have wondered, â€œIs falling out in the Spirit legitimate?â€ In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff goes straight to the written Word of God in order to answer this question. Is there scriptural witness to this phenomenon? What is the answer to those who presume that it is the work of the flesh - or worse - the demonic realm? What exactly is it that might come from God that would bring a person to the ground? Listen to better understand what is happening when someone falls out in the Holy Spirit. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

September 7, 2021 The Need Among Todayâ€™s Prophets

The Church needs to go on record and declare that there is a desperate need for more God-sent prophets today who speak the true word of the Lord. Our generation is being pulled with deception from multiple directions each and every day. Holy Spirit-guided prophets gain the attention of the people and refocus them on what God has said and is still saying. This present generation needs an authoritative, clear prophetic voice. Â But there is an alarming trend of unaccountable prophets who seem to have the Word of the Lordâ€¦ but not His heart. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff calls all of us to consider that God evaluates not only what we say, but how we say it. It is not enough to merely have the truth and release it. God expects those who speak for Him to intentionally reflect who He is, not just what He is saying. There is one singular passage of New Testament scripture that clearly addresses the heart-posture of all of Godâ€™s servants. We cannot shirk the call to challenge and confront, but there is a lurking danger that we need to address if we are truly going to speak in the name of the Lord. Younger prophetic people especially need to hear what Paul declared to Timothy concerning those who expose, confront, correct and rebuke those who are caught in lies. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

August 31, 2021 Covid 19 & The Mark of the Beast

Jesus foretold the growing number of pestilences (pandemics) that will hit the planet at the end of the age. The last twenty years has clearly initiated the beginning of the fulfillment of His prophecy. Multiple pestilences will continue to spread across the planet as we near the Second Coming. Governments across the globe will have to respond to the growing health crisis. Medical teams will research, respond and facilitate approaches for howe to contain or eliminate the diseases and viruses that arise. The question that many are already asking sounds something like, â€œCould these government-facilitated injections be the mark of the beast referred to in the book of Revelation?â€ Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks us though Revelation 13 and the teachings about the activity of the antichrist, the false prophet and the mark of the beast. Should people taking the vaccine consider that they might be aligning with the coming one-world government which will eventually be led by the antichrist? Is all the Covid 19 pandemic and vaccine science an unholy platform for current or future spiritual deception? Christians need to be informed, and the bible gives us the perfect information to bring us to a truthful conclusion about whether or not the Covid 19 vaccine is connected in any way to the mark of the beast.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

August 24, 2021 Fighting With Truth As Your Weapon

This crazy culture is full of dark deception and frenzied with audacious lies. From the media, the government, the elites in Hollywood and the power-gripping cabals scattered across the globe, itâ€™s a constant sewage-stream of lies. Jesus Christ came to set us free from all inward deception, and within that spiritual freedom, He also wants us to live in an outward freedom. There is no way to escape the clear principle found in Scripture that God values our freedom. Of course, there is that most famous of freedom statements from Jesus Christ himself that we can anchor in when He declared in John 8:32, â€œYou will know the truth, and the truth will setÂ youÂ free.â€Â With these words we discover the eternal connectionÂ between truth and freedom. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff pulls no punches as he unapologetically exposes some of the lies of the culture which Christians are choosing to believe. Spiritual warfare almost always sources itself in some form of deception from the demonic realm. Yes, Satan goes after our minds. Each of us needs to do a regular inventory of what we are thinking and believing so that we can know that we are free in Christ and no longer servants of deception.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

August 17, 2021 Setting Yourself Apart

We have all heard the term religious spirit. We typically think of someone who is critical, judgmental, sanctimonious, and possibly controlling. Nobody wants to be that person and, frankly, nobody wants to be around that person. Sometimes, people make the mistake that any talk of consecration, sanctification, obedience, and holiness is nothing more than the communication of a person with a religious spirit. They could not be farther from the truth. God is calling His people to a devotion-fueled consecration the closer we get to the return of Jesus. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff reminds us that revival cannot come to a compromised Christian. Churches that are casual about holiness and sanctification will remain lukewarm and eventually grow cold in their love toward Jesus. God is raising up a generation of sons and daughters who hate legalism while loving holiness. This episode helps us all to determine the difference between these two things, and to go after sanctification with a heart of joy.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

August 10, 2021 Explaining Hebrews 6:4-6

The go-to passage for those who believe that a truly born again Christian can fall away from the faith is typically Hebrews 6:4-6. But does this passage actually teach that? If so, how does it get reconciled with the enormous amount of other bible passages that teach the opposite? On a surface reading, it is easy to conclude with trembling that Hebrews 6:4-6 warns us that we must hold ourselves in the faith. Yet, when we look at the surrounding verses and previous chapters in Hebrews, we can discern that there is another explanation for what the author of Hebrews is teaching. We have to get this passage of scripture right! In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff provides some necessary in-depth teaching on this famous passage of scripture. Also, when Jesusâ€™ parable of the four soils is laid up next to Hebrews 6, we can find great understanding (and deep relief!) about what is and is not being communicated by these controversial verses. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

August 3, 2021 Guarded By God

In this final of four episodes on the topic of the great falling away at the end of the age, we take time to consider whether or not the idea that truly saved people can ever become lost is consistent with the character of God. In each of these episodes, we have submitted dozens of passages of Scripture that clearly teach that part of genuine saving faith is the element of enduring unto the end. In this final episode, we learn that our Bible reveals a Father, Son and Spirit commitment to fully deliver those who have been fully redeemed. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff appeals to the listener to consider the weight of the Scripture in order to answer for themselves the question, â€œWhy should I have confidence that I will never fall away from the faith?â€ There is no sliding scale for answering this question. Either Christians can depart from the faith or we cannot. Whatever you believe, there are practical ramifications which follow. We must align with the Word of God.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

July 27, 2021 Jesus & John Talk About Falling Away

In this third episode on the topic of the great falling away at the end of the age, we give our ear to the words of the Apostle John and the words of Jesus Christ. Both Jesus and John spoke specifically about the issue of whether or not a genuinely converted believer can commit apostasy or renounce the faith. Surprisingly, what they teach is not complicated to understand, yet many seem to gloss over the unquestionable words of the Savior and His apostle on this topic. We cannot afford to do so as we approach the end of the age. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff takes us through a small handful of scriptiures and calls us to ask and answer the question, â€œWhat is the Bible saying about who can and cannot renounce the faith?â€ Who exactly are these people who were once connected to the Church, declared allegiance to Jesus, served in ministryâ€¦only to later recant all that they once said they believed? Is there any danger that I might become one of those people? There are clear answers to these questions and this episode helps us to throw down our anchors in these choppy waters of theology. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

July 20, 2021 Might I Fall Away? Well, It Depends

In this second episode on the topic of those who fall away and commit apostasy at the end of the age, we dive into several passage of Scriptures that help clear up some of the surrounding issues to this difficult topic. Clearly, there are people within the visible church who once seemed zealous for Jesus, who later fade away, fall into sin, or abandon the faith all together. What are we to think of these people? Scripture is clear that those who are saved are those who endure unto the end - so those who don't endure don't make it into the eternal Kingdom, right? Right. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff addresses the question of whether or not those who abandon Christ lose their salvation...or whether they ever had it to begin with. Focusing on the doctrine of salvation, Jeff calls the listener to search the Bible to understand what it means to be truly saved. When we gain a firm grip on how we come to Christ, we are better equipped to answer the question as to whether or not those who truly come to Him can ever abandon Him. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

July 13, 2021 Who Can Fall Away at the End of the Age?

Scripture is clear that there will be a massive rebellion and rejection of Christ at the end of the age. The teachings of Jesus, along with the writings of the Apostles Paul, Peter and John all declare that the coming of the antichrist will be connected to a global repudiation of the person and teachings of Jesus Christ. Additionally, God will send a massive delusion into the earth whereby untold numbers of people will embrace the deception of the antichrist. The question that needs to be answered is whether truly saved people will be a part of those who will apostatize and reject Jesus. Is it possible for those chosen in Christ before the foundation of the earth to renounce and reject Him at the end of the earth? In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff takes the listener through a passage of Scripture that is crucial to our discerning just who it is that will be deceived before the Second Coming of Jesus. Are we left to our own thinking to determine if it might possibly be true Christians? Does the Bible leave such an important issue in the fog? This episode is the first of several that will be released on Mavericks & Misfits that will serve to help us understand what true Christians should expect as we approach the end of the age. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

July 6, 2021 Six Flies That Spoil the Oil

Operating under the anointing is a non-negotiable for the servant of God. Mark it down: God NEVER gives an assignment that can be sustained apart from His abiding anointing. He does not want His children to think they can do anything apart from His touch. This is why God makes advancing the Kingdom impossible apart from His presence. Solomon once wrote a strange statement apart flies that spoil the oil. From that ancient, inspired word in Ecclesiastes 10:1, we can learn some very common elements that rob us of our own anointing. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff offers six elements of the flesh that undermine our living in the anointing of God. Many of these are regularly tolerated by Christians and churches today. Jeff's hope is that the upcoming generation will give strong pushback against these compromises and reclaim ground that Jeff's own generation has surrendered. It is time to pluck out the flies that spoil the oil. Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

June 29, 2021 Here Come The Spiritual Fathers

If there is one thing we should never be known for, it is the reputation of being a generational critic. What is it about some Christians who seek to grow in the art of pointing out all that is wrong with the generation coming behind them? How did that become something so easily done by us as we get older? Letâ€™s also point out that younger Christians can tend to be dismissive of older Christians, wrongly believing that those who are no longer young are also no longer relevant. Part of spiritual warfare that is occurring right now is the activity of Satan and his demons that seeks to divide the generations of believers from one another. The reason why? Because God has ordained that one generation invests, equips, loves and leads the generation coming behind them. Satan fights this with all his might. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff calls on those in his generation (and older!) to enthusiastically take up the mantle of spiritually parenting the younger generation of Christians. Highlighting verses from Psalm 78, Jeff passionately exhorts the listener to embrace his or her part in either investing in those coming behind them or, if they are younger, to place themselves humbly in the sphere of influence of older, wiser Christians. God is meeting spiritual orphanhood with spiritual fathers and mothers. When we all say YES to this activity from Heaven, some pretty amazing things begin to happen. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

June 22, 2021 Race, Politics & Outrage in the Church

All Christians understand on some level that we are get along with each other. Fewer understand the intense spiritual reality that God has established that makes our unity a priority. Jesus did not merely die for individuals so that they could go to Heaven. Jesus died to make people who are vastly different from one another to become one in Him. Sadly, this reality of oneness with each other has become an ever-diminishing concept in the modern Church. Especially in America, we have become divided, scattered and weakened through things that we have allowed to undermine our unity which flows from oneness. This trend must be called out and reversed. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff doesnâ€™t even attempt to be diplomatic or politically correct. He calls Christians of all ethnicities and political persuasions to realign with the oneness we have in Christ, and to renounce lesser loyalties which divide us. Exposing the core issues among blacks and whites, Jeff includes a call for us all to repent of our self-serving, self-seeking ways. There is plenty of room for us to 1) be helped with the content of this episode or 2) to grow more offended with those with whom we do not share racial nor political views. We can be helped, or we can be hardened - the choice is the listenerâ€™s to make. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

June 15, 2021 When God Goes Silent

Many Christians pursue deeper encounters with God. The God of the bible is highly interactive. In fact, God so desired interaction with humans that He became one of us in the person of Jesus Christ. God the Son experienced what it meant to be fully human. Ultimately, Jesus was born, lived, grew, died and arose so that God might interact with us forever as His children. But what do we make of those times when God is anything but interactive with us? What are we to think of those seasons wherein God goes silent on us? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff unpacks the single most bewildering Jesus ever had with an individual. This account is found in only place in the Gospels, and there is nowhere else in the account of Jesusâ€™ life that looks remotely similar to how He interacted with the woman in this passage. From this account, we are enlightened and empowered to understand what to make of Godâ€™s seasons of silence in our lives. There is so much good fruit that can come to us when the interactive God of Heaven goes silent on us on earth.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

June 9, 2021 How Jesus Fixes Hypocrisy

In ancient times, an actor on stage was often known as a comes from theÂ GreekÂ wordÂ hypÃ³krisis, meaning â€œplay actingâ€. It referred to a person who wore a mask in front of others to pretend they were someone else. This is the essence of all hypocrisy. The hypocrite thinks himself or herself to be something other than what they truly are. In Matthew 7:1-5, Jesus warns His followers that we all have the potential to live as hypocrites. He firmly tells us what we must do to avoid this disastrous potential for our lives. Â In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff calls the listener to consider if life has become frustrated, stagnant and generally unhappy. For some, it is for no other reason than that they have become fixated on what is wrong with others. This leads to judgmentalism and comparative-ism. When we are more concerned with what is lacking in others than we are in what is lacking in ourselves, we are in the process of becoming hypocrites. This podcast throws up a massive U-Turn sign for those heading in that direction. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

June 1, 2021 Jesus When You Are Weak

In the dream, everyone was dirty, struggling, hungry and without direction. The scene was a dusty, third-world marketplace. A handful of Americans were ministering to Africans and Middle Easterners who were flooding the marketplace needing food and assistance. The need was great, but the resources were insufficient. Somehow, Jesus was meeting the needs through the small number of servants that He had there. Nothing was easy. Nobody was strong. But Jesus was helping countless people. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff shares this recent dream and ties it in to what he believes the Lord is saying to many Christians who are presently stretched, un-anointed, weary, doubting and struggling to continue to wait on breakthrough. What does Jesus think on us when we are weak in mind, body and soul? When we feel we are invisible to Him, is He actually keeping His eye upon us? The enemy seeks to exploit us in our seasons of weakness, but the Scripture is clear that God uses these seasons to powerfully develop something inside of us that we will need all of our days. Listen closely and reignite your confidence that even in your weakness, Jesus is doing something gloriously good. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 25, 2021 The Ministry of Accusation

What if you were actually loading the weapon that the devil is about to shoot you with? The issue of spiritual combat is not something any of us get to opt out from. You are being targeted by the demonic realm. The primary place where they wage ware is against your thinking. For anyone who experiences crippling doubt, shame, fear and guilt, there needs to be a wake-up alarm sounded because that person is actually cooperating with the enemy. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff unapologetically reminds all Christians exactly what Jesus has accomplished for them. The devilâ€™s ministry of accusation is meant to run interference in our souls so that we cannot rest in all that Christ has accomplished. You and I are authorized and empowered to send the devil and his demons feeling from us. What is our primary weapon? The truth of Christ and the power of the Gospel. This episode weaves in Jeffâ€™s personal testimony of how he combats warfare and offers you advice you can use today to never fall prey again to the accusation of the enemy. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 18, 2021 How God Delivers Us From Doubt

The life of faith is sometimes pictured as God calling us out into the deep waters where we quickly find ourselves in over our heads. This is actually an accurate illustration of what following Jesus is supposed to look like. God does give you more than you can handle. God does put impossibilities in front of you. God does ordain circumstances that are not within your strength to handle, fix, or overcome. The reason that God does these types of things is because, if you could handle this stuff on your own, you would never learn to depend upon Him. If you never learn to depend upon Him, you will never know what it means to partner with Him. When God calls you out into deep waters, doubt will tell you to locate a sandbar that you can stand on. Thereâ€™s no glory on a sandbar. He wants you in over your head because that is where He swims. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff uses a familiar story in Mark 9 to help us acknowledge our doubts, mark them as unworthy, and overcome them in growing trust of God and His ways. Everyone struggles somewhere along the line to trust God. We are called and empowered to live rich lives of growing trustâ€¦but not by continually playing it safe. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 12, 2021 The Desire & Destiny of Satan

Many people understand and believe in a literal devil. The Bible teaches that he exists. Jesus was fully aware of the reality of Satan, and He battled Satan in the wilderness. But where did the devil come from? How did he become what he is today? In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff unpacks two rare Old Testament passages that serve to reveal to us how Lucifer, a once-glorious angel in Heaven, became Satan, the evil dragon whom God cast out of Heaven and destined for destruction. If you know your enemy, you are better equipped to defeat him. If you can stay aware and confident in the final scene of Satanâ€™s existence on earth, you would never fear him again - nor would you ever cooperate with his schemes. Here is the story that the devil hates to be told.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

May 4, 2021 Charismatics & Baptists Together?

What if I told you that one of the most significant prophetic words I have ever heard came from a 5-point Calvinist Baptist preacher in the year 1855? You might very well choke on your skepticism. But it is the truth. One of the most famous historical Baptist pastors who ever lived released a word about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that I believe is coming to pass in this present generation. My heartâ€™s desire is for the Baptists and Calvinists to receive that word from their hero. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff walks us through his own testimony of having begun his Christian journey as a Baptist, only to be encountered by the Spirit in such a way that he has never been the same. God is going after His Baptist children in this present season. All over the nation, Baptists and other conservative evangelicals are awakening to their own need for Holy Spirit power. This podcast challenges both Charismatics and Baptists to come into agreement about God the Spirit, and to partner in the truth of the written Word for Kingdom advancement. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

April 27, 2021 Muzzling the Devil

It seems that there is no shortage of talk about spiritual warfare. It is always a hot topic among believers and most Christians are interested in it on some level. In fact, Christians love to debate one another on the issues of spiritual warfare, demons, the devil and what it means to wage war in the Spirit. Sadly, we are more skilled at talking about it and debating it than we are in actually winning the battles against Hell. This has to change. It needs to be addressed in your own life. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff helps us to discern how the enemy is strategizing against the individual believer in this immediate moment. In what way is the prowling lion seeking to devour you? Where is he seeking the open door and what must you do to keep that door bolted shut? In this first episode on the topic of spiritual warfare, Jeff exposes the tactics of the enemy against your mind and provides guidance about immediate steps you must take to intercept his strategy against you. Much is at stake. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

April 20, 2021 Perceiving A New Move of God

God is not trapped in the Bible. While He never operates in contradiction to what He reveals about Himself in Scripture, God is not locked in a historical vault. While you might think that is obvious, many Christians will fight militantly for the idea that God is not doing anything today that He has not already done in the past. These believers fail to consider that there is a new move of God in their generation. What they do not believe in, they cannot perceive. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff takes us back 2,500 years to the days of Ezra when God had clearly released a new move into a generation of His people who had never seen Him move. While the younger people enthusiastically embraced this new move of God, the older generation fell into the trap of wishing they could relive what God did in their younger years. From the examples of both the younger and the older, we can learn much about how to steward the move of God in our present day. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

April 13, 2021 Five Accusations Against the Servant of God

When two loudmouthed losers showed up on the scene at an ancient scene where God was doing a new work, the accusations they released against Godâ€™s servants got preserved in the Word of God. From their intentionally harmful accusations, we can expose how our enemy comes against us today after we have said YES to the assignment from Heaven for our lives. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff strengthens and encourages you in the need to ignore the enemy as he consistently uses these five accusations against those who serve Christ. These debilitating phrases are repeatedly used by Satan and his demons against us. When you know them ahead of time, and how you must respond to them, you are able to finish the assignment which God offered to you. Sometimes, you simply have to shut the devil up.Â Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

April 6, 2021 What To Look For In A Leader

Many of us have read more leadership books than we can count. These books can be very valuable to those who are called by God to lead in the Kingdom. Yet not all of these books seem to agree with each other about what the non-negotiables are for spiritual leaders. Jesus called twelve men to become His disciples and He planned to release them into leading the early Church after He ascended back to Heaven. Surprisingly, none of the twelve knew how to lead. Jesus had to train them, model leadership for them, and then empower them to succeed while putting up with their deep flaws as growing leaders. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff challenges us to look for a few non-negotiable qualities in those who lead in the Kingdom. Using the biblical account of an incredible moment of leadership failure by James and John, Jeff points out the clear and present dangers for all of us when we are considering 1) becoming a leader or 2) a leader whom we will follow. If we learn the primary principle offered in this episode, we will have the potential to walk in powerful Kingdom leadership and also recognize the right spiritual leaders who are worthy of us following. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 30, 2021 Misplaced Priorities In The Kingdom

Jesus used some interesting, thought-provoking phrases when He preached to the crowds. On one particular day, Jesus told some proud religious leaders that they constantly lived life â€œstraining out a gnat and swallowing a camel.â€ What in the world was He talking about when He called out these religious leaders to stop living judgmental lives of hypocrisy? What does it mean to strain a gnat and swallow a camel? Well, itâ€™s extremely important that we learn what Jesus was talking about because He told those proud leaders that woe was upon them for committing this type of sin. We do not want to follow in their footsteps, do we? In this episode, Jeff unpacks the meaning behind this strange phrase that Jesus used only one time. Ultimately, we learn that Jesus is not content to allow any Kingdom person to live with misplaced priorities. We must discern what God is doing in our generation and aim all our energies in getting in on that. Judgmentalism, superiority, religious pride and performance-based righteousness are all dangers for those who are swallowing camels. It is time that we spit those camels out. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 18, 2021 Fixing A Broken Mind

Your mind has always had a bullseye on it. More than your body or your emotions, the enemy designs to seize control of your thinking because the mind is the control center for the life of the Christian. Anger, depression, anxiety, fear, selfishness and paranoia are just a few of the proven flaming arrows which Satan and the demonic realm have fired at the bullseye of your mind. Is it possible to be 100% completely immune to the attacks of the enemy on our minds? Can we rise above even the human weaknesses that try to cycle in and out of our thinking? The answer is undoubtedly YES. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff layers our understanding with one key Old Testament verse which is a non-negotiable in the battle over our minds. In this one verse, God releases a statement of truth about our minds, a promise to dominate our lives with peace and an equipping instruction that tells us how to live above the flaming arrows of the enemy. It is time for the people of God to say YES to this offer from Heaven and to permanently receive the key to fixing a broken mind. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 16, 2021 How To Fight Fairly In The Kingdom

Most of us were told as children, â€œDonâ€™t play with fire.â€ This is wise and helpful instruction from parents to children which is meant to protect them from harming themselves and others. There is also a very important spiritual parallel to the call for us not to play around with fire. Satan and his demons have declared war against all that God loves. The forces of hell are not messing around in their strategy against us. They show no mercy as they seek to steal, kill and destroy. Christians have the upper hand because we operate with the authority and power of God. That isâ€¦as long as we are in holy fellowship with Him. In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff reveals what it looks like when a group of people who were not walking with God sought to fight the devil. From their mistakes, we soberly learn the danger of playing with spiritual fire. We also get to see what it looks like when we operate in holiness, faith and confidence that the enemy is a defeated foe. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 11, 2021 This Generation: It's Time For You to Step Out

What if Holy Spirit chose not to ever show up again at your home church? Is an idea like this even possible? Well, it depends on whether or not we simply presume upon His omnipresence versus hungering for His presiding presence. He doesnâ€™t show up at churches simply to observe. If He is present, it is to oversee and lead the entire thing. This is a season where individuals, families, churches, ministries and entire cities need to recognize that God is not obligated to anoint, honor or bless anything we might choose to offer up to Him. He does not blow up simply because we show up. Holy Spirit is looking for the hungry, ravenous Christian and church who cannot bear the idea of remaining in a status-quo version of representing the King. God is calling this generation of Jesus-followers to step out in an undeniable fashion, moving in both Word and Spirit, faith and fire.

In this episode of Mavericks & Misfits, Jeff releases a prophetic charge as he calls the listener to recognize that God intends to something dynamic through any willing believer. Jeff cautions us that we can spend years waiting on God to send revival, not knowing that He is waiting on us to simply step out and start walking in it. Revival is already released, but it will only be experienced by the hungry, risk-taking, whatever-it-costs Christians and churches. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 9, 2021 This Generation: What God Will Do

The most important thing that we can understand in any generation is the answer to the question, â€œWhat is God presently doing?â€ Throughout the history of the Church, God has always had a remnant of people who cared deeply to discern what was His current activity. Think about it: if we do not know where and how God is working in a generation, how can we cooperate with His plan? Those ancient sons of Issachar were not the last people of faith who discerned the times, knew what God was doing among them and understood how to respond. These types of people are in every generation. God wants to make you one of them.

In this episode, Jeff utilizes an ancient passage from Isaiah 42 to help see some of the things God is presently doing in our own generation. He never changes, so there are some activities from God that never cease. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff highlights four present works of God that He wants His people to embrace and cooperate with. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 4, 2021 Can We Love Our Bibles Too Much?

Don't be shocked, but the answer is YES. We can actually love our bibles too much. Jesus is actually the one who taught us this startling truth. The two extremes that seem to mark the American church is 1) those who have little regard for the written word because they see it as religious, doctrinal suppression and 2) those who idolize the Scriptures and are unaware that they know the Book but not its Author. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff uses the words of Jesus, who confronted the most conservative, moral and biblically educated people of His day. Jesus exposes their bibliolatry, and calls them to discern the difference between knowing the bible and knowing God. From His words, we can learn the dangers of assuming we are walking in authentic discipleship in the Spirit simply because we are pursuing academic scholarship in the Scriptures. These two things are not the same. This podcast will help you see if you are in danger of falling into this common trap and how to get free from it. Your heart longs for more than mastering a book about God. You were made to personally, intimately know God Himself. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

March 2, 2021 Second Coming: Instructions & Preparations

We are in trouble if we ever lose our awareness that all of the commands, instructions and practical counsel of Scripture is given to us in the context of being ready for the return of Jesus. When God tells us how to live, it is not an abstract set of rules given to a mindless group of robots. The Scriptures are God's love letter which, in part, prepare His children to be reunited with Him in such a way that we are absent of sorrow, regret or loss. The father wants us ready to meet His Son face to face. Christians must live with a constant awareness that this moment is the next grand event on God's prophetic calendar. Yes, Jesus is returning to planet earth. And we must get prepared. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff highlights some specific instructions given by Paul to the Christians living in Thessalonica. From what Paul wrote to them, we clearly see that how we are living prior to the return of Jesus is crucial to how we will exist in the coming Kingdom. Much of our focus on the Second Coming tends to rest upon timeline, world governments, the identity of the antichrist and geopolitical events that speak of the end of the age. Yet, in Scripture, we find repeatedly that the mentions of the Second Coming are attached to very specific, clear and practical instructions concerning how God expects Christians to be living. Now is the season for us to consecrate our lives and prepare ourselves to meet the King. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 23, 2021 Nadab & Abihu - Why Supernatural Encounter is Not Enoughâ€¨

What if you were handpicked by God and invited to ascend up a mountain to meet with Him in personal, visible supernatural encounter? You would be overwhelmed with that kind of immeasurable honor, right? Well, we would like to believe that that type of privilege would so radically change our lives that we would never again be the same.Â But this actually happened to two men and, later on in their lives, they became causal with the stewarding the worship and presence of God. Sadly, Nadab and Abihu are famous for their failure to honor Godâ€¦and paying the ultimate price because their own supernatural encounter with Him was not enough to produce holy awe and obedience from them. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff calls the listener to consider what it truly means to live a life of supernatural encounter. We have become far too casual and flippant with how we handle the presumed presence of God. In Charismatic circles, we are in danger of treating the power and presence of Holy Spirit like a freakish side show in a spiritual circus. This episode summons us to learn from Nadab and Abihu's lives so that our own encounters with God produce holy awe, lasting reverence and deep obedience to the One who meets us on the mount. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 18, 2021 Where Did the Prophets Go?

We should thank God for pastors and teachers who ground us in the Word and lead us as the flock of God. We should rejoice when apostolic mantles become evident on those in the Kingdom who will take new territory for the Kingdom and invite us to run with them into new Kingdom missions. Evangelists keep our hearts fresh with the passion of Jesus for the lost, forgotten, discarded and rejected. We need these men and women to lead in the Church. But where are the prophets? Where is the fresh voice of God that flames and boils in the hearts of men and women in our generation? Teachers can bring us lightâ€¦but prophets bring the heat. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff emphasizes and exhorts the Church to pray for a new crop of God-saturated prophets to arise in our generation. We are to watch for them, listen to them., weight their words and strongly align with the exhortations and rebukes which God sends to His true prophets. The Church has lost her appetite for the prophetic word, and we have consequently become lukewarm and, in some places, desensitized, paralyzed and fossilized. Prophets bring awakening and the listener may soon discern that God is calling you to emerge as a prophetic voice in your generation. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 11, 2021 Understanding Identity & Assignment

Do we still believe that God calls people to significant purposes in our generation? If so, do we consider that one of those people whom He is calling isâ€¦you? So many people have believed the lies and accusations fed them from a godless culture and from the demonic realm which serve to short-circuit their identity in the Kingdom and their God-ordained purposes for being alive in this generation. From the life of one Old Testament man, Gideon, we can learn how God patiently works to bring us back into alignment with our identity so that we can powerfully fulfill our destined assignments. In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff calls the listener to boldly reconsider that God Almighty has a powerful reason for the listener being alive at this time. Though the culture is dark and the enemy is active, God is seeking people who will believe His promises and step up so that they can step out into callings that they have not considered in a long time. This empowering episode kicks doubts to the curb and motivates us through Kingdom truth to live the life God has ordained for us. If Gideon can do it, we all can. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 9, 2021 CHANGES: Swapping Out Your Saul for David

God doesnâ€™t have to ask permission. God doesnâ€™t have to wait on an invitation. God never puts His sovereign plans on pause until we are comfortable. If you are living in the Kingdom, you are living under the promise of regular seasons of change. What are we to do when God ordains that something we presumed was permanent is now being swapped out for something else? People, places, assignments and relationships are all temporary in this life. Anything is subject to be changed by a wise, loving and highly precise God. Sometimes, when God wants to raise up a new King David in our lives, we tend to cling on to our former King Saul. In seasons of change, God requires our trust and our obedience. In this message, Jeff highlights the struggle of Samuel when God required him to move on from all he had invested in King Saul. From Samuelâ€™s reluctance to accept the change of plans, we can look into a mirror and see our own struggle when God interrupts us and ordains a new direction. In the midst of this episode, Jeff shares with the audience a recent shift of intense magnitude in his own life and ministry. God is on the throne, and He sometimes decrees from that throne, â€œIt is now time for a shift.â€

February 4, 2021 Upsizing Your View of the Kingdom

If we only grasped the intense difference between a little-k & big-K view of Godâ€™s Kingdom, we would never settle for the lesser version of Christianity. What does it mean to upsize your understanding of Godâ€™s Kingdom? As long as we are saved, does it really matter if we are little-kâ€™ers or big Kâ€™ers? Is my ministry, my family and my church rooted in the Kingdom or something less? What will Jesus say at the judgment seat to those who exchanged a kingdom for a Kingdom? In this Mavericks & Misfits episode, Jeff unapologetically exposes the differences between a hijacked, cultural view of Godâ€™s Kingdom versus a biblical, everlasting view of it. Listen and prepare to be motivated to press in to all that God has for you, refusing to settle for the diluted, compromised offer of Christianity that has infected the 20th & 21st century Church. Once you make up your mind that you will not remain someone who settles for less than Jesus purchased for you with His blood, you will be fueled-up and freed to step into the amazingly different realm of powerful, big-K Kingdom living. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

February 2, 2021 How should a Christian Voice Political Dissent?

The Church in America has a love/hate relationship with politics. We love when our candidate wins and the other one loses. We want our politicians to express and advance our spiritual, philosophical and cultural values. It is clear that the Church has drawn heavily from the well of culture to drink rather than the culture drinking from what the Church has to offer. We are a divided nation, and the Church looks sadly similar to the political divide we see in America. Soâ€¦we disagree. Now what? In this episode, Jeff uses Scripture to address the issue of where the boundaries are drawn for us expressing our political discontent. Are we allowed by God to protest? Is there a place for civil disobedience? Should we use our influence to expose the decay in the lives and views of politicians? If we are permitted to do so, how much is too much? The bible actually has quite a bit to say in response to these types of Christians. The most important question may be, â€œIs the Christian willing to affirm and align with what the bible has to say about our attitudes and actions concerning governmental authority? Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org

January 28, 2021 The Kingdom of God Is Not What You Think

When the new year found us on the calendar, many of us made a resolution toâ€¦ shrink. We wanted to drop a few pounds and lose a few inches. The holidays brought meals, sweets and treats and the bathroom scale told us that we celebrated well. Getting smaller is an annual hope for many of us each January. There is another kind of shrinkage that is taking place in the Church. We have been prone to shrink down our understanding of the Kingdom of God. There is something inside each Christian that tends to reduce the Kingdom down to something that resembles us, our tribe, our church, our denomination or even our political and cultural views. God wants us to remove our grubby little hands off of His Kingdom and to welcome it to remain all that He ordained it to be.

In this episode, Jeff helps us to understand how easily we all can take what is immeasurable in the Kingdom and unwisely, even sinfully, shrink it down to suit our own tastes. As we approach the end of the age, Jesus is not going to return to endorse our own version of the Kingdom. He is presently shaking all that can be shaking so that only what cannot be shaken will remain. What remains will inevitably be the Kingdom that He has designed since before time began. This is the Kingdom view that He will endorse, advance and manifest through us. Additional resources are available at TransformingTruth.org Â

January 26, 2021 How to Receive the Gift of Prophecy

In this final episode in the series on Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Jeff Lyle release practical counsel based on scriptural wisdom about how all of us can pursue the gift of prophecy. While nowhere in Scripture is there listed a 3-step method to receiving and honing spiritual gifts, we are given the launching pad in God's Word about how we should approach the command for us to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. So many are simply waiting on God to "zap them" with the gifts of the Spirit. God doesn't typically operate that way. Instead, He invites us to partner with Him in both the pursuit and perfecting of how we operate in prophecy and all the other gifts. In this episode, Jeff pastors the listener into how to begin the approach to operating in prophetic gifting. Both newbies and seasoned saints will be helped by this guidance into growing and flowing in prophecy. Additional resources available at: TransformingTruth.org Reference: 1 Corinthians 14:1, 29; Romans 12

January 21, 2021 Can A True Prophet Get It Wrong?

"Houston, we have a problem!" Those famous words from decades in the past are often used by us in modern days to indicate that there is a significant issue which needs to be addressed. Church, we have a problem! The issue of modern-day prophets missing the mark when it comes to the fulfillment of the words they release is an issue that authentic believers cannot afford to ignore. If we are going to lead in the power and gifting of the Holy Spirit, then we must remain concerned that we are all operating in a consistent flow of excellence. With the volume of public prophecies given about the outcome of the Presidential election, the question has been raised both inside and outside of the Church, "Can a true prophet ever get it wrong?" The answer is YES. But how they respond when they get it wrong may be the revelation of whether or not they are true prophets of God. In this episode, Jeff shows how a New Testament prophet missed the mark in an important word that he released to the Apostle Paul. From this biblical example, we can discern the answers to many questions that are currently being asked about the gift of prophecy and the office of a prophet in the Church. These are no longer side-issues. These are central, and we must give honest answers to difficult questions. Additional resources available at: TransformingTruth.org Reference: Acts 11 & 21

January 19, 2021 Is There a Difference Between Old Testament Prophecy and New Testament Prophecy?

The controversy over prophetic ministry is nothing new. In fact, the early Church, in order to keep the gift of prophecy from being recklessly used, employed a means of testing and confirming prophetic words. Prophecy was not a gift and ministry that happened independently from the community of believers working together. According to the Apostle Paulâ€™s teachings, prophecy is the most vital spiritual gift, so the modern Church needs to get reacquainted with this reality and come together in a commitment to reel in sloppy prophetic ministry. One of the main reasons we have a problem today in prophetic ministry is due to the fact that we fail to distinguish the differences between Old Testament prophets and the New Testament gift of prophecy. If we can understand these important differences, we can adjust how we release and receive prophetic words.

In this episode, Jeff walks us through the unhealthy results that occur when unaccountable Christians operate with a â€œThus saint the Lord...â€ mentality as they carelessly release prophetic words. Sloppiness is neither a gift nor fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is important to God that we constantly operate in partnership with Him when engaging in prophetic ministry. May those who listen to this episode come into agreement that Holy Spirit is offering us all a better way to flow in the gift of prophecy.

January 12, 2021 PROPHECY: What Exactly Is This Gift?

2020 was, for many, the year where an ugly spotlight fell on prophetic ministry. So many voices in the Charismatic Church boldly declared that Donald Trump would win the election and have another four years in the Oval Office. Obviously, that did not come to pass. Because of this, and also many other less notable prophetic words that never come to pass, many are asking if there is validity to the gift of prophecy, the answer remains YES! Yet, we believe that there is a great need for reformation to prophetic ministry in the Church. In our next focus in our current series on The Gifts of the Holy Spirit, we open up a discussion about the gift of prophecy. In this episode, Jeff begins to explain three essential components of how the gift of prophecy is exercised: Revelation, Interpretation & Application. He also addresses the failure of the Church to prioritize the gift of prophecy as he removes the idea that prophecy is no longer a valid gift. In fact, Jeff shows why prophecy is seen in Scripture as the most important gift. For those new to this gift, and for those who are comfortable in prophetic environments, there is much we need to learn in order to ensure that we honor Christ as we pursue and use this vital gift of the Spirit. Reference: 1 Corinthians 14:1-5 Topics: prophecy, Old Testament prophets, testing the prophetic word, cessationism, divine revelation, false prophets, growing in the propheticÂ Additional resources available at: TransformingTruth.org

January 7, 2021 Tongues: Heavenly Passion & Humble Precision

God did not send the gifts of the Spirit so that Christians could argue about them. These gifts are ministry tools to advance the Gospel and edify believers. If we are spending more time debating them than actually pursuing them, we are breaking the heart of God. Yet, as we pursue the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we must acknowledge that there definitely right ways and wrong ways to use the gifts. We cannot rest until we are releasing spiritual gifts in the way God prescribes to us. In this 4th and final episode on the gift of tongues, Jeff highlights the best of use of tongues and what the results are when Christians operate in this manner. Challenging the status-quo use of tongues among Charismatics, Jeff teaches through some often-overlooked guidelines for how to use this gift when the Church is gathered together. We often assume that any scriptural regulating of tongues risks quenching the Spirit. What is we are actually quenching the Spirit by failing to honor the very instructions about tongues which He placed in Godâ€™s Word? We can possess the right gift but be using it the wrong way. When it comes to the gift of tongues, we need both the passion and the precision for God to bless it in its fullest. Reference: 1 Corinthians 14:14-20 Topics: tongues, prophecy, local church, private worship, spiritual unity, praying in the Spirit, building up ourselves, building up others, spiritual maturity

December 31, 2020 TONGUES: Avoiding Two Extremes

How did the gift of tongues become so controversial? Why is it that things can get awkward (or even heated!) when this topic arises among sincere Christians who view tongues differently than one another. One segment of the Body of Christ may have an issue with overemphasizing the importance of tongues. The other side of the aisle may tend to cause confusion by undervaluing or even dismissing this gift. Here are the two extremes we all must avoid: showing off tongues and shutting down tongues In this episode, Jeff calls both Charismatics and those who do not believe in the gifts of the Spirit to take a fresh look at what the Scriptures say about tongues. We all have room to grow (or grow up!) when it comes to this gift. We cannot allow tongues to be the defining issue of who we are in Jesus. Neither can we afford to measure others by this one spiritual gift. God gave all of the gifts to unite us and help us build up the Body of Christ. Anywhere a spiritual gift is used to divide Christians, it is not the activity of God.Â How do we come to discern if we are rightly using the gift of tongues properly? It is all spelled out in the Word. From the Word of God we can avoid the two extremes of the gift of tongues. This episode will help you to personally grow in your attitude and activity surrounding the gift of tongues. Reference: 1 Corinthians 14

December 29, 2020 TONGUES: Uses, Misuses & Abuses

The most theological man found in all of the Bible was the Apostle Paul. He was an intellectual genius. His mind was unparalleled. He was biblically informed and deeply disciplined. And, according to his own testimony, Paul prayed in tongues more than anyone he knew. He also boldly wrote that he wanted all believers to speak in tongues. In this episode, Jeff begins to address the proper regard we should all have for the gift of tongues. From its prophetic use in the gathered church when tongues are interpreted, to the private use of tongues in prayer and praise which requires no interpreter, this gift is given to build up the body of Christ. Yet, many Christians fail to recognize that the Word of God places guardrails on the usage of the gift of tongues in the gathered assembly. If we fail to properly use any of the gifts which Holy Spirit provides for us, then that gift can become a tool of division and even sin. This message calls all of us to consider our attitudes and activities surrounding the gift of tongues. Reference: 1 Corinthians 14

December 22, 2020 TONGUES: The Orbit of the Controversy

Finally! We get to dive into the ever-controversial gift of Tongues. In this first session about tongues, we explore the three times tongues are mentioned in the Book of Acts. Many who struggle with the gifts of the Holy Spirit still being valid do so because they have a biblical misunderstanding of the gift of tongues. Are tongues known languages? If so, which of the 20,000 historical languages/dialects are tongues given? What is meant by "the tongues of angels"? Have we in the Church possibly educated ourselves out of experiencing this gift? The book of Acts may help show us that we have placed upon the gift of tongues some forms of validation that actually are not found in the Bible? In this episode, Jeff begins to teach several sessions on the need for us to understand this amazing gift of the Spirit. Each of these sessions on tongues will help the listener be equipped to understand the gift, desire the gift, properly use the gift and help others experience this gift. We need to value the gift of tongues to the same degree that God does! Â Topics: tongues, baptism of the Spirit, laying on off hands, mighty rushing wind, tongues of fire, cessationism More resources from Jeff Lyle are available at TransformingTruth.org Reference: 1 Corinthians 14:1-5

December 17, 2020 Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Speaking Gifts & Serving Gifts

The Apostle Paul was not the only writer who addressed the gifts of the Spirit. In his first letter, the Apostle Peter laid out some important, yet simple, spiritual guidance about the charismata (Holy Spirit gifts). Peter breaks down the gifts into two categories to help us better understand how the gifts are used. These two categories are 1) speaking gifts and 2) serving gifts. In this episode, Jeff unpacks Peter's instructions and calls the listener to once again consider how and why God the Spirit has gifted him/her for ministry. You have spiritual gifts! God has given them to you to glorify Him, fulfill your personal ministry assignment and to serve the Body of Christ with what you have been given. This is an extremely encouraging and empowering episode because it once again highlights the Kingdom reality that every Christian is profitable to what the Lord is doing in our generation. Â Topics: prophecy, leadership, giving, serving, teaching, exhorting. More resources from Jeff Lyle are available at TransformingTruth.org Reference: 1 Peter 4

December 10, 2020 Practical Guidance for Using Your Spiritual Gifts

All of the gifts of the Holy Spirit are supernatural giftings. They are not the same as natural talents or learned skills. While talent and skill can be used by God, they are never a substitute for the charismata (grace gifts from the Spirit). You have spiritual gifts if you are saved. Having gifts that are uniquely given to you by God the Spirit, you are called to be using them. In this episode, Jeff walks us through a few verses in Romans 12 wherein Paul is giving examples about how Christians are to use their own spiritual gifts. Some of these gifts, on the surface, may not even appear to be overly supernatural - but they are! Jeff takes intentional time to talk about the proper use and the potential misuse of the gift of prophecy. This episode will increase your hunger to know your gifting from God and to use it in deliberate ways that bring Him glory and bring solid help to those around you. Â Topics: prophecy, leadership, giving, serving, teaching, exhorting. More resources from Jeff Lyle are available at TransformingTruth.org Reference: Romans 12:6-8 Â

December 8, 2020 What Are the Specific Gifts & How Do We Use Them?

Most of those listening to this podcast series on the gifts of the Spirit will be familiar with terms such as word of knowledge, word of wisdom, prophecy, healings, tongues, interpretation of tongues, healings and discerning of spirits. These are well known descriptions of the charismata â€“ gifts of the Holy Spirit. So, what exactly do we need to know about these gifts? What might it look like when these gifts are used by us or those in our churches? In this episode, Jeff leads the listener through an initial list of spiritual gifts found in 1 Corinthians 12. Because God intends for believers today to operate in these gifts, it is essential that we know as much as is possible from the bible about them. Chances are, the listener will discover in this episode and the one which follows at least one gift of the Holy Spirit that God has granted them. Once we discover our individual spiritual gifts, we can experience the joy of partnering with Him in using them. Â Topics: faith, healing, miracles, tongues, praying in the Spirit, discerning of spirits, prophecy, building up ourselves, building up others, spiritual maturity. Reference: 1 Corinthians 12:7-10

December 3, 2020 Spiritual Gifts: Blueprints for the Body

When the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of a person, He comes bearing gifts. The book of 1st Corinthians has much to say about these gifts and how important it is that Christians understand what is taught about them. Â How many different gifts are there? Who chooses which gifts we get to flow in? Can I obtain a gift I do not currently seem to have? Is everyone expected to manifest all of the gifts? Â In this episode, Jeff unpacks what the Bible says about the main purpose God has given us the gifts of the Spirit. The listener will also learn how and why God intentionally grants certain gifts and withholds other gifts from us as individuals. So much encouragement is found in this episode for those who do not yet know their primary spiritual gifting, or who wrongly believe they have no gifts or significance in the Kingdom. At the end of this episode, Jeff calls each believer to move wholeheartedly toward seeking higher levels of the gifts of the Spirit so they can use them for the Fatherâ€™s intended purposes. Topics: spiritual unity, spiritual diversity, Body of Christ, cooperation instead of competition, tongues, praying in the Spirit, prophecy, building up ourselves, building up others, spiritual maturity. Reference: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

November 26, 2020 Spiritual Gifts: Green Lights & Guardrails

God gives the Church the gifts of the Holy Spirit for the purpose of building up others in the faith. The gifts are ministry tools, not ministry tricks. We not only need to seek, receive and use the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we need to do so in a way that always seeks to benefit others and bring honor to God. Because of major misuse and abuse of the gifts among Charismatics, many Christians have turned their backs on the potential to walk in the supernatural gifting of the Holy Spirit. Yet, the misuse of the gifts must never become the disuse of the gifts. We have a green light from Heaven to walk in the power and gifts of God the Spirit. Yet, there are also guardrails that come with those green lights. We are told how to use the gifts when the Church is gathered together. In this episode, Jeff addresses the need for those who practice the gifts of the Spirit to tighten up how these gifts are employed through our lives. The Charismatic circus is not the proper display of the gifts of the Spirit. We owe a debt of love to all people to seek the gifts, receive the gifts and to employ the gifts as the Scriptures outline for us. Nobody wants to quench the moving of the Spirit, but nor do we ever want to bring dishonor to Him by carelessly treating His tools as toys. Topics: tongues, prophecy; order in the Church; Holy Spirit manifestations; flesh; More resources from Jeff Lyle are available at TransformingTruth.org Reference: 1 Corinthians 12, 13 & 14

November 24, 2020 Debunking the Myth of Cessationism

Did you know that the Bible teaches that there will be a time when the gifts of the Holy Spirit completely cease? Tongues will vanish. Prophecy will pass off the scene. Revelatory knowledge will no longer be an active ministry gift. The Bible is clear that there is an appointed time that the gifts will cease. But has that day already come or are we offered and expected by God to be operating in the gifts of the Spirit today? The doctrine of cessationism teaches that the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit ceased around the end of the first century. Some Christians believe that the completion of the writings that make up the New Testament resulted in the Holy Spirit no longer releasing His supernatural gifts to believers. Others believe that when the last of the Apostles died, the signs, wonders and supernatural gifts died with them. This may be the most important message in the current podcast series on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In this episode, Jeff takes 30 minutes to debunk the myth of cessationism by using the very same passage of Scripture that cessationists use to support their belief that the gifts ceased. If we are going to help family and friends understand that the gifts are available and necessary today, we must love them enough to show them from the bible why they must forsake the myth of cessationism and move into the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit. Â More resources from Jeff Lyle are available at TransformingTruth.org.Â Reference: 1 Corinthians 13:8-12

November 19, 2020 Why Do We Need the Gifts of the Holy Spirit?

One of the reasons many Christians do not prioritize the gifts of the Holy Spirit is because they have never seen them used as God designed. We who operate in the supernatural gifting of God the Spirit are well aware that sometimes we can get sloppy with the gifts. Sometimes, we allow confusion to come as we manifest the gifts. Sometimes we do not operate in love and concern for others when we are moving in the supernatural power of the Spirit. Because of these types of errors, many believers who might otherwise press in for themselves to experience spiritual gifts have turned and walked the other way. Charismatics need to get refreshed as to why God ever gave the gifts in the first place. We need to recommit to using the gifts for those reasons. Â In this episode, Jeff explains from 1st Corinthians 12 why and how the gifts are given to believers. There is so much to be said about this, and it is the height of flippancy to ignore the large number of verses that explain how God the Spirit imparts His gifts to us. To dismiss spiritual gifts as something belonging to the ancient Church but no longer to us today is simply not able to be supported by the Bible. Listen to this episode and see just how intentional the Spirit is in making sure each Christian receives the exact gift(s) that He wants for them to use. Â Topics: tongues, praying in the Spirit, prophecy, building up ourselves, building up others, spiritual maturity Â Reference: 1 Corinthians 12; Romans 12; Ephesians 4; 1st Peter 4;

November 19, 2020 Who Needs the Gifts of the Holy Spirit?

Every. Single. Christian. Thatâ€™s who needs the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Â What is even better news is that all Christians are already gifted by the Holy Spirit. As we study the Scriptures, we see clearly that spiritual gifts were not just for a select few or for a certain slice of the body of Christ. No, the teaching of the Bible reveals that all who are born again through faith in Jesus are born of the Spirit, and also supernaturally gifted by Him. Nobody is exempt, and none of us can fulfill the mission of the Father apart from the gifts of the Spirit. The gifts are for all of us! In this episode, Jeff calls the listener to discipline his or her thinking to believe only what the Scriptures begin to teach about the gifts of the Spirit. If it was not an option for the first-century Church, it cannot be an option for us to live our lives apart from these gifts. Listen carefully to see if what you have been taught about Holy Spirit gifts matches up with what the Word says. A great difference in your Christian living will appear when you move from what someone says the Word says and into what the Word of God actually says within itself. Reference: 1 Corinthians 12:1

November 12, 2020 What the Apostle Paul Teaches About the Holy Spirit

The call of the Father for all of those who have believed upon His Son is to walk in the Spirit. The Christian life is not primarily intellectual or emotional. It is relational. We Christians are to do life with God. How do we accomplish this? We have God the Spirit alive within us. As we grow in knowing Him, experiencing Him, submitting to Him and enjoying Him, life as a Jesus-follower takes on an incredible dynamic that ruins us for dead religion and cultural Christianity. We become alive in the Holy Spirit. While Jesus said more about the Holy Spirit than anyone else in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul instructs us specifically on what it means to be regenerated by the Spirit, led by the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, gifted by the Spirit and transformed in the Spirit. You may have experienced countless encounters in the Holy Spirit, but can God use you to help those who have been wrongly taught that the supernatural working of the Holy Spirit has ceased? In this episode, Jeff challenges all believers to know what they believe about God the Spiritâ€¦and why they believe it. Experience alone is not enough. We can know what Scripture says about the working of Holy Spirit so that we can be equipped and empowered to help those who have been taught by religion never to expect much from Him. This is the second episode in our mini-series that is focusing on the person and work of the Spirit of God. Reference: Romans 8 Â

November 10, 2020 What Jesus Teaches About the Holy Spirit

How is it that people who equally love and honor Jesus can reach such different conclusions about the person and work of God the Spirit? Isnâ€™t it just like the devil to create division in the Church over that member of the Godhead who lives inside the Christian and is at work in the earth today! Having the same Bible, you would think that we would believe the same things about the Holy Spirit, His ministry, the gifts He imparts and how He leads and guides believers today. But large numbers of Jesus-followers intensely disagree and divide over what they believe (or do not believe) concerning the Holy Spirit. This episode of Mavericks & Misfits walks us through what Jesus himself teaches about Holy Spirit. While there is much more written in Scripture than what we find from the Lord in John 16, we can certainly learn much about what Jesus intended for every generation of His followers to learn and believe about God the Spirit. This episode begins a series of podcasts which will help both Charismatics and non-Charismatics to frame up their views on the Holy Spirit that is free from denominational limitations, unexamined traditions and unsupported practices. We need to align with the Word of God in all our beliefs. What we believe about the Holy Spirit is no exception. Reference: John 16

November 5, 2020 Revival & Refusing to Give In to Weariness

When you received Jesus as Lord over your life, there was one component that He made a permanent reality without asking for your input. Jesus made you a SOLDIER in His army. Thatâ€™s right, none of us come into the Kingdom without also being drafted into the Army of God. So, the question is not IF we will fight but, rather, when and how we will fight.Â Spiritual warfare is a constant activity in the life of all Jesus-followers. Satan and his demons are not unclear on the reality of the battle. They are a committed host and never take go on leave. Though the final outcome has already been decided, each Christian is called to take territory for the King while also defending territory that the enemy seeks to reclaim from us. This constant warfare can be both exhausting and isolating - especially when so many Christians have gone AWOL and we are tempted to wonder if we are fighting alone. This message features an obscure Old Testament warrior whose example in fighting the enemy can help us remain in the fight, crush our enemy and bring God all of the gloryâ€¦even if we find ourselves fighting alone. Weariness is real. The battle can be exhausting. Yet, for those who refuse to give in to that weariness, there awaits an amazing outcome. Reference: 2nd Samuel 23:9-10

November 3, 2020 Revival & the Call to Honor

When Jesus assumed the role of the lowest household servant by washing the feet of the disciples, He left us an example. He told the disciples that they could not comprehend in the moment what exactly He was doing when He washed their feet. He promised them that they would understand later as they followed His example by intentionally humbling themselves and showing honor to each other.Â So, what does Jesus want Christians today to learn about humility, serving others and showing honor to each other? How do we wash each otherâ€™s feet in this current season of hostility and division? Who among us is willing to follow the vulnerable example of the King who served in the lowliest way? When we take the time to consider in depth the great differences between the disciples whose feet Jesus washed that day, we can understand the richness of His present call for us to show honor to one another - especially those who are very different from us in the Body of Christ. God honors those who honor others. At some point, He will call us to show honor to those with whom we have great differences. This message shows us what that looks like. Reference: John 13:1-7; Luke 6:14-16

October 27, 2020 Revival & the Need for Oil

Jesus once released a famous parable that focused on a wedding. There were ten virgin bridesmaids all awaiting the Bridegroom to appear so that the wedding festivities could begin. In the parable, Jesus declares that half of those bridesmaids were wise, and that half were foolish. What made the difference between the two groups? The wise ones carried oil and the foolish ones did not. This parable centers around the Second Coming of Jesus at the end of the age. The bridesmaids represent two types of people: those who are prepared for the coming of the Bridegroom and those who are not. Because Jesus highlights the presence of oil as the defining mark between the two groups, what do we need to glean from what He taught? What is the oil and how do I know if I have it? What do the lanterns that each virgin held represent? Can't I have oil without the lantern? Can I have the lantern without the oil? This is no small lesson from the Son of God. The closer we get to the end of the age, the more important it becomes for each of us to discern if we have oil for our lanterns. It is not enough to hold the lantern because, if there is no oil, we become like the foolish virgins who experienced much loss when the Bridegroom appeared unexpectedly.

October 27, 2020 Revival & the Sanctity of Life

It is likely that every true Christian would desire God-sent revival if they thought long enough about the possibility. Who among us would not wish to witness mass salvations, widescale miraculous healings, open deliverance from demonic strongholds put on display, or a fresh outpouring of signs and wonders through the power of Holy Spirit? We would all desire to be a witness to these things that characterized the Church in the Book of Acts. The question that needs to be answered first is, "Are we ready to steward such an outpouring from God?" God will likely withhold revival on the grand scale until His people are hungry, humble, unified and purified. There are current barriers to revival coming to the Church in America that must first be addressed. This podcast highlights one of the most significant demonic strongholds that is very much apparent among those who consider themselves Jesus-followers. This stronghold is anchored in the American Christian's willingness to embrace the philosophy and practice of abortion. What is God's heart toward the practice of abortion? Is there anything from Scripture that might serve to indicate how God will deal with us as it pertains to abortion? Does the Bible clearly address the issue or is it truly as confusing as our culture portrays it? This is NOT a political issue. This is a topic that either exalts God or diminishes God in the eyes of those who are looking to the Church to take a position. Take the time to listen to Jeff Lyle walk us through the issues surrounding abortion, and then personally answer the only essential question: Do I believe God and stand with God on this issue of abortion and the sanctity of life? If we can come to agreement on this issue in the American Church, we have cleared a massive hurdle in our pursuit of awakening and revival.

October 27, 2020 Remarrying Word & Spirit

If forced to choose which of these two treasures would most flavor your Christianity, which would you pick?Â The Word of God or The power of the Holy Spirit Quite the dilemma, isnâ€™t it? Well, thanks be to God that He has never asked us to choose, nor will He. Sadly, many (if not most) churches and denominations want us to do so. A great divorce has occurred and Christians are often forced to pick which parent they will live with: Word or Spirit. The early Church was marked by God with apostolic truth (the Word) and Holy Spiritâ€™s supernatural gifts and power (the Spirit). Why should todayâ€™s manifestation of Christianity be any different? We must prioritize both. In this podcast, Jeff Lyle calls us to embrace the remarriage of Word and Spirit in our own walks and in the churches wherein we worship and serve. We cannot afford to prioritize either one while ignoring the other. The early Christians required both in their generation and so do we.

October 14, 2020 Introducing, Mavericks & Misfits!

Amidst all the fading trends and fossilized traditions that pass themselves off as Christianity, many Jesus-followers find themselves spiritually homeless, living without a tribe to which they can connect. There has to be a landing spot for mavericks and misfits - a place they can call their home. Jeff Lyle, a self-declared church maverick and ministry misfit, hosts this podcast in order to cut through through all the incomplete, inaccurate and inadequate expression of modern Christianity.

Episodes