Find Your Wow

In this episode of Pursuing Faith, Dominic explores John 8, and the words Jesus spoke to a woman who was full of shame. He said to her, “neither do I condemn you, go your way and sin no more."

When we are in a place of shame, the natural response is to hide our truest self or to push people away. For example, in the book of Genesis, Adam and Eve ate of a tree and realized they were ‘naked and ashamed’ and immediately hid from God. Shame always causes isolation, because intimacy is the risk that our shame will be exposed. In the words of Bene Brown, “Shame corrodes the very part of us that believes we are capable of change.”

But here’s the good news: because of grace, we don’t have to live in shame anymore. 

In a world that continuously lies about our identity, that loves to remind us of all that we’re not — not rich enough, smart enough, good-looking enough, or famous enough—God says: You are mine. And you always have been. Nothing can change that. You are not defined by the mistakes you’ve made but by the grace of God.

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In this episode, Dominic has a conversation with Joseph Clair. Joseph serves as the executive dean of the Cultural Enterprise, which encompasses the humanities, theology, and education at George Fox University in Oregon. He is also dean of the College of Humanities and an associate professor of theology and culture.

Before joining the George Fox faculty in 2013, he earned his PhD in the religion, ethics and politics program at Princeton University while also working as an assistant in instruction. His efforts were rewarded with a Department of Religion Teaching Award (2011-12) and a Graduate Prize Fellowship from Princeton’s Center for Human Values (2012-13).

Prior to Princeton, Clair earned an MPhil at the University of Cambridge as a Gates Cambridge Scholar. He also holds master’s degrees from Fordham and Duke University, as well as a bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College.

His research and teaching interests include Christian thought and ethics and the role of religion in public life. He is the author of Discerning the Good in the Letters and Sermons of Augustine (Oxford UP, 2016) and Reading Augustine: On Education, Formation, Citizenship, and the Lost Purpose of Learning (Bloomsbury, 2018).

Clair lives on a hobby farm outside of Newberg with his wife, Nora, and their four children. 

Links:
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Christianity Today Article

In John 6, Jesus allowed his disciples to sail into a storm. But why? Why would he allow them to face something that they were terrified of experiencing?

In this episode, Dominic shares three ways that God uses storms in our life: To grow our faith, strengthen our hope, and deepen our love.

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In this special Christmas episode, Dominic shares a message from the gospel of John. What’s unique about this gospel is that, unlike the other gospels, John doesn’t give us the facts about Christmas. For example, there is no mention of the manger, the star or the wise men. Instead, he digs past the details and shares what Christmas means — not only theologically, but for our lives personally.

Augustine, the early church theologian once wrote: “Man’s maker was made man that He, Ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother’s breast; that the Bread might hunger, the Fountain thirst, the Light sleep, the Way be tired on its journey; that Truth might be accused of false witnesses, the Teacher be beaten with whips, the Foundation be suspended on wood; that Strength might grow weak; that the Healer might be wounded; that Life might die.” The meaning of Christmas is unearthed when the truth and beauty of Jesus incarnation is considered. We hope you enjoy this episode!

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In this episode, Dominic explores the story of Jesus sudden healing of the man at the pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15). God is a God of 'suddenly.' This is found 87 times in the Bible. 

They wept, 'suddenly' an angel appeared at the tomb...
They walked, 'suddenly' He appeared on the Emmaus road...
They prayed, 'suddenly' the Spirit came down...

Watch. Listen. Prepare. Your next open door is closer than you think.

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 In this episode of Pursuing Faith (first published by the Unbelievable Podcast), Dominic debates British philosopher and atheist, Julian Baggini. Julian is the author of over 20 books, founder of the British Humanist Association, has written articles for the New York times, the Guardian, and the Wall Street Journal, and has given a Ted Talk on philosophy and neuroscience.

Dominic and Julian discuss the virtues, human longing and purpose, and what the world would look like without God. 

Links: 

https://www.pursuingfaith.org
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unbelievable/id267142101
https://www.julianbaggini.com
https://justinbrierley.com

Have you lost your sense of wonder? Are there things, places, opportunities, or people that, in your stress and distraction, you’ve looked past? Have you failed to see the beauty right in front of you? In the hope of big happiness, are you missing the small joys? 

In this episode of Pursuing Faith, Dominic Done takes some time to reflect on the practice of gratitude. In the midst of our busy life, God invites us to slow down and fix our thoughts upon him. Gratitude is the art of taming our frenetic, edacious minds to appreciate the wonder of life as it is right now.
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In political science, the word “reactionary” is used to describe someone who is content with the status quo. Without a vision of their own, when change comes, they quickly adapt to the new environment. However, a “revolutionary” is someone who creates and calls others into positive change.

As you study the life of Jesus, we discover that he was a true revolutionary. As He led his disciples, his life was a conduit for grace, compassion and love. So too, following Jesus is always for a purpose: to live out his vision and mission in the world.

In this message, Dominic teaches from John 4 and explores Jesus revolutionary vision to reach those on the margins of faith.
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In this episode of Pursuing Faith, Dominic teaches on the story of the Samaritan woman from John 4. We’re surrounded by a world that fuels our discontent. Alluring advertisements, temptations, distractions, materialism and consumerism all offer the promise of satisfaction, but only leave us more restless than before.

In the face of superficiality, Jesus says: “If you drink of these waters you will thirst again, but if you drink of the water I give, you will never thirst.” As the late Timothy Keller wrote, “if we look to some created thing to give us the meaning, hope, and happiness that only God can give, it will eventually fail to deliver and break our hearts.”

Pursuing Faith is a listener-supported non-profit ministry. If you’d like to partner with us, visit our website at www.pursuingfaith.org

What does it mean to actually "believe" in God? Is it merely an affirmation of faith or something more? In this episode of Pursuing Faith, Dominic explores Jesus conversation with Nicodemus in John 3 through the lens of what true belief looks like.

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