Podcasts Archives - Long Story Short Podcast

When someone says they saw God provide a miracle, what do you think? Maybe they recount how he rescued them from illness, financial difficulty or job loss. God absolutely does those things all the time. Still, real life is made up of a combination of joy, sorrow, fear, pain, suffering, blessing, reward, provision and disruption. All of these intermix to make up a life. Miracles are just part of the story.

Ken & Muggy’s Miracles

Our uncle Ken is a storyteller, so he can tell you hundreds of interesting accounts that would keep you on the edge of your seat. They include heart breaks, redemption, laughter, danger and some absolutely glorious miracles.

Ken’s experience over many years deepened his faith that God is intricately involved through it all. Ken is also the first to say there have been seasons of struggle and questions left unanswered. Among the many stories he tells is how his first wife, as a young adult, wasn’t supposed to live more than a few years following a diagnosis with lupus. And yet, Muggy and Ken ended up married, had a family and spent many years together as best friends. It was a miracle.

Muggy had a beautiful spirit. You sensed it immediately when you met her. She seemed so full of life even through years of battling illness. At one point, she and Ken visited our home as I laid on the couch, struggling to regain my ability to walk, talk and even breathe due to my own life-threatening illness. I vividly recall Muggy anointing me with oil and heart-felt prayers for healing. With deep gratitude, I count that experience as an integral moment in the miracle that ultimately led me to walk again. Yet, it wasn’t all that much later that Muggy lost her own life to the effects of lupus. Life and death, answered prayer and loss, sickness and recovery – these all danced together in a single life.

Waiting & Watching

Life is mysterious, unpredictable, and sometimes even desperate. But it’s also full of blessings, provision, grace, love and, yes, miracles. As Ken shares in his story, God doesn’t promise us the life we planned. He doesn’t show us everything about how he’s intervening. Just glimpses. Ken recalls just taking it one day at a time, doing his best to be obedient while waiting and watching for God to reveal the next step.

Ken’s story inspires us to want to live in the present. It impresses us not to wait, but pray to hear God’s voice every day, along with the strength to keep walking in his direction.

During a particularly challenging season, Ken received some music that deeply spoke to him. He wants to share it with you:

Media

Jeff Piecora, Good Day Gravity

The post 29: Miracles are Just Part of the Story appeared first on Long Story Short Podcast.

Stop the car. Those three words made the difference between life and death for our friend Dorsey, or Dee as we call him. You got an introduction to Dee Howard in podcast 27. When we met him last year, we immediately connected due to our common interest in storytelling. He weaves story into his local cable show, into his work as an author, and in the classroom where he inspires participants toward better choices in life.

Dee openly talks about a number of poor choices he made early on in life. Some of those choices landed him in jail. That wasn’t uncommon for him and his friends who grew up in the infamous Robert Taylor housing project. This area of Chicago was notorious for gangs, drugs and violence.

Dee credits God with saving his life numerous times. He says he’s been given more chances than any of us deserves. He’s thankful, realizing that some people don’t even get one second chance. Recently, he published One Way, No Left Turn, a book about how wrong choices can become addictive and lead to a downward spiral. Dee’s hope is that his experience will help others avoid some of the mistakes he made.

For episode 28, we worked with Dee to record the first chapter of the book. It’s a dramatic story – one that can easily lead to some great discussions about God’s presence in the world. As you listen, consider how God may have been interacting in the lives of each of the characters. While making good choices doesn’t guarantee safety from heartbreaks, Dee’s point is that making continual wrong turns never ends well.

Not only is this a compelling, true story, but it gave us the opportunity to work with our good friend, Jeff Piecora who built an original music score. It’s been a blast to work together with these friends. This podcast is the result of our collaboration. We’d love to hear your reaction. Would you take a few moments to leave a review on iTunes afterward?

Learn more about Dee Howard:

• Dee on Facebook
• Dee’s book, One Way, No Left Turn
• Dee’s website

Media

• Jeff Piecora, Good Day Gravity

The post 28: Stop the Car appeared first on Long Story Short Podcast.

Rescue Mission in North Minneapolis closes a three-part series from KG Wilson (episodes 24, 25). As always, this story had an impact on us. Our new friendship with KG threw us into a few unexpected adventures, introduced us to some new friends and breathed fresh inspiration into our storytelling. We didn’t plan any of that.

Isn’t that just like God? As he takes us through life, it’s not like he gives us a map. We just take the next step in front of us as he unfolds his plan. Somehow, it almost seems that if you don’t take that step you may miss out on an adventure.

We met KG through our friend Tamara who shared a great story back in episode 5. Partnering with KG opened a whole new world of seeing God at work. It’s also led us to new friendships. And that means new stories to record. We’re really excited about what we have planned.

We’ll tell you more about that in another podcast. Today’s podcast starts with KG describing an encounter with a young lady trapped in heroin addiction. The overdose death of her friend catapulted her toward desperately seeking answers. God ultimately freed her right there on the street with KG.

KG started by simply asking what she was looking for. You can see this encounter on the video posted in the show notes. KG asks, “Do you want to believe Christ for real today?” That question isn’t far from the one Jesus asked his disciples in Mark, chapter 8. “Who do you say that I am?” This is one of the key questions any of us must answer in life.

This story is deeply personal for KG. He admits that without Christ freeing him years earlier, he’d have been on the same path as this woman. He says he’s sure he’d have ended up a dead man. KG’s own story is what helps drive him to see others delivered by Jesus.

Learn more about Kay G Wilson, Peace Activist, United in Peace, Inc.

• Message from the Bench
• Tamara Jorell’s Bullies
• Star Tribune’s documentary

Media Credits

• Theme Music: Sons of Avi
• Dramatic Sounds: Adi Goldstein – Desert Sounds, Epikton – Infernal Battle Action, Anton Verkhotin and Uniquesound – Touch Inspiration via Pond5.com

The post 26: Rescue Mission in North Minneapolis appeared first on Long Story Short Podcast.

Have you ever regretted your physical or even emotional scars? You wish they’d just disappear. You may have even tried removing them. Our guest today shares how he thought about this as well. And then he found his scars tell stories that help hurting people hear God’s story.

We introduced Kay G Wilson in episode #24 “Tragedy on Speed Dial.” Kay G is a peace activist who brings a positive, caring message to those without hope – and he’s been doing that for over 13 years. Today you’ll learn more about Kay G’s work in street ministry and how his tattoos make a difference.

It wasn’t enough to listen to Kay G’s stories from a safe distance. He challenged us to take part in a street ministry event. So, on a beautiful fall day we joined Kay G and a number of others on the corner of Franklin & Chicago. He told us this is one of the most notorious spots in Minneapolis for gang activity. It was eye-opening to witness people smoking crack at the bus stop.

We were there mainly to learn and pray. It was a privilege to pray with a half dozen or more people. Our hearts broke as several of them shared their stories. Through tears, one man spoke of being sober for over a year and had just recently slipped back into drug use again.

Right there, seemingly on the devil’s door step, we couldn’t help but see the contrast. On the one hand, this was a park known for drug deals, addiction and violence. But that day, it was filled with passionate prayers, gospel-inspired music and stories of God freeing people. There was even dancing! It felt like a spiritual battlefield, but we never felt afraid. There was hope on the street corner that afternoon. God transformed how we looked at that park. We pray in a different way for those neighborhoods. And we long for God to keep pouring out his power and freedom there.

Kay G’s past with drugs, gangs and violence gives him credibility on the street. But even more than that, his genuine love for people opens doors to share what God did to get him out of that life. He’s not afraid to put his arm around people on the street. At the same time, he’s not afraid to speak truth to them.

Learn more about Kay G Wilson, Peace Activist, United in Peace, Inc.

• Message from the Bench
• Tamara Jorell’s Bullies
• Star Tribune’s documentary

Media Credits

• Theme Music: Sons of Avi
• Dramatic Sounds: Adi Goldstein – Desert Sounds, Epikton – Infernal Battle Action and Uniquesound – Touch Inspiration via Pond5.com
  

The post 25: Scars Tell Stories appeared first on Long Story Short Podcast.

The friends in this podcast have a house full of kids. When they invited us over for dinner, we naturally anticipated some chaos. It was anything but. We were amazed at how respectful and well-mannered the children were. The older ones chipped in with dinner preparations without prompting. The younger ones quickly won our hearts.

Most of us may fear that taking on just one foster child would demand every ounce of expendable time and energy. Somehow Bob and Julie seem to have moved past that kind of “logical” thinking and have now expanded their family into the double digits.

As we listened to their story, we thought about how so many people have things they either feel called to do in life or dreams they wish they had time to accomplish. Typically we’re inclined to feel like conditions have to be near perfect to us to move ahead.

Bob and Julie’s experience turns that kind of thinking upside down. In fact, many of their foster children arrived during less than ideal circumstances. And yet, even as they’ve felt stretched like a rubber band, there’s no doubt that God’s power and provision more than outweighed the difficulties. His presence seemed all the more evident because of the challenges.

How about you?
We’re wondering if you might be contemplating following God into some new places in life. Maybe circumstances seem too daunting. We’re praying with you for supernatural wisdom that floods you with courage to do whatever it is he is leading you toward. May God give you clarity and creativity that rises above the challenges and reveals him all the more.

And we’re praying for those of you who are opening your home to children. It’s clearly not always easy. But seeing God pour peace and joy into the lives of children who started out life in such difficulty brought new meaning to the laughter and smiles we saw in this family.

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Bumper Music: Sons of Avi

Additional sound media by Pond5:
UniqueSound
Anton Verkhotin

The post 14: Stretched Like a Rubber Band appeared first on Long Story Short Podcast.