Author: rtableadmin

Welcome to a different kind of Redemption’s Table.  Normally our episodes are for everybody, but today’s story is particularly addressed to American Christians.  It’s a sojourn to a forgotten place that begins with a forgotten harvest – and harvest and Thanksgiving usually go hand in hand.

The vision begins in a field of corn in a high mountain meadow.  A harvest has come and gone, and not a single ear has been picked.  Such neglect raises curiosity.  How can this be?  Suddenly, a man dressed as a Mexican peasant emerges from the parched stalks and a mysterious journey begins.  

Every American Christian needs to consider the questions raised by today’s imaginative parable that was first shared 25 years ago.  

Special thank you to my good friend Jeff Gore – a singer-songwriter who has been involved in cowboy ministry before there ever was such a thing as a cowboy church.  His songs “We Gather Together to Pray” and “Who’s Gonna Tell Them” are used by permission.   

https://www.youtube.com/@jeffgorecowboyandgospelmus4434

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Have you ever been to a place where past, present, and future come together before you?  Where you can reflect on the expanse of what has already swept by and ponder the volume of all that is yet to come?  Have you ever stood on the brink of a waterfall?  A waterfall is nature’s hourglass.

Host Robert Barge has stood on the brink of Lower Falls of the Yellowstone twice in his lifetime.  Once around 1972; again in 2024.  Approximately 53 years and 8 trillion, 357 billion, 40 million gallons of water has plummeted 308 feet over the top of Yellowstone’s tallest waterfall in between those two visits.  And time and water have volumes to speak to anyone with ears to hear and hearts to respond.

Join us for a whimsical Table that encourages everyone to take note of the hourglass moments of life so that we may be prepared to receive the rich and creative lessons they hold.

Featuring “Fly” by Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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You are a human GoPro and your soul is recording every nanosecond of your life!  To some degree, you’re taking it all in.  Your internal audio and video recorders are receiving data at an incredible shutter speed.  And even though your memory capacity is enormous, you can’t recall it all, but it is amazing how much your soul does remember.

Welcome to a fun Table episode.  Let your mind imagine some of the photographs your soul has taken.  Discover how to live your life like an Easter Egg Hunt.  And let gratitude help you catch more of the treasure of “the good and perfect gift variety” pouring down upon each of us every day from our Father of heavenly lights!

Your soul is taking photos even with the lens cap on, but the wider you open your aperture, the more the light gets in.

Special thanks today to Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors who inspired today’s Table in a big way with their song “Soul’s a Camera” (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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I first met Peter Scott when I walked into his place of business in Montgomery Alabama almost 10 years ago. His office wall was filled with photographs he had taken from Yellowstone National Park.  We struck up a conversation and became fast friends.  

Pete worked in Yellowstone back during his college days.  He has since visited our first National Park multiple times and spent decades studying this incredibly diverse place.  Now, Ranger Pete is quick to tell you he’s not an actual Park Ranger, but he does have intimate, first-hand knowledge of Yellowstone and he loves sharing the wonder he has found in this very special place where our creator God has some spectacular artwork on display.

Pete and I both spent time in Yellowstone this fall on separate trips.  And it’s an honor to bring him to this wild conversation recorded live at El Taco Shop Restaurant in Montgomery.  Pete had the Pollo Loco and I had the best Sincronizada I’ve ever tasted. 

Featuring “Let’s Go Outside – Campfire Version” by The National Parks (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

http://www.rangerpete.org

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There’s a phenomenon that takes place within us when we spend three days in the great outdoors.  It’s called “the 3-day effect.”  Three days in nature can reset our brains.  And after those three days, our ability to problem solve goes up, our inductive reasoning goes up, and we become more creative.  When we step out of life as we know it and into life as we were meant to live it, it changes us.  And whenever I vacation in the wilderness, I always know when “the 3-day effect” kicks in.  It’s that noticeable.  

Last month I spent eight days in Yellowstone National Park.  “The 3-Day Effect” prompted me to write the following entry in my journal:

            “Dying is a hard process.

            Staying dead is a hard process.

            And when the third day comes, you don’t will yourself back to life.

            Only the resurrection can do that.”

Featuring “Waiting For Lightning” by The National Parks (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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“Everybody I know says they need just one thing

 And what they really mean is they need just one thing more.” – Rich Mullins.

Everyone has a life song.  Or if you’re like me, you have dozens of life songs.  But through the years, one seems to keep rising to the top.  Rich Mullins’ My One Thing is that song for me.  It’s a song about Jesus – my one thing.

Who or what is your one thing?  The one thing that sets the table for all the other things in your life.  That’s today’s big question on this special fall Table that is all about my favorite person who has ever lived.  If Jesus is not yet your favorite person, I encourage you to give a listen to discover why He might should be.

Today’s episode is dedicated to the First Baptist Church of Warner Robins Youth Group – 1986-1992.  

Featuring “Son of God” by Chris Renzema (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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Confluence.  A place where two or more rivers or streams merge together.  Confluences fill me with wonder.  I want to journey upstream to find the headwaters of every tributary.  A confluence is kind of like a reversed fork in the road made of water.  Wherever you are right now is a confluence.

Think back over your summer.  What were your favorite tables and favorite moments?  What has God been trying to whisper to your spirit these past three months?  Perhaps you heard it, but maybe you didn’t.

Perhaps your current confluence looks more like a desert.  Perhaps you have run aground because life has become spiritually dry.  Take heart.  There is water to be found in your desert.  You only need know where to look.

Featuring “Summer of Memories” by The National Parks (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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The Holy Trinity is a wondrous mystery.  You know the certainty of the Truth of it – and yet, it blows your mind.  Absolutely amazing how Truth and Wonder come together in the glorious reality of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

But there is also an unholy trinity that lurks beneath the surface of enough churches and denominations, it needs to be recognized for what it is – the unholy threesome of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and Religion. Because Holy Spirit has often been tossed because He cannot be controlled and replaced by a more reasonable idol we can control – our Religion.

Have you ever presumed to be Holy Spirit in someone else’s life?  Have you ever presumed to be Holy Spirit while following His lead?

Featuring “Stronger” by Ellie Holcomb (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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Do you hear the song?

The song that is all around you right now.

Do you hear that?

It’s a song being sung especially over you.

It’s a Voice that never ceases to sing to you.

And when you hear it, it makes all the difference in how you live your life.

“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

The music is real.  The dance is joyous.

What is there that you do not know is there?

Listen and you will hear.

Featuring “Spirit” by Judah & the Lion (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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A Conversation with Special Guest:  Steph Cherry

It is always a delight to bring Steph Cherry to the Table.  You never know what or who might wander through the conversation.  There might be a tornado in the backyard or a birthday visit with a capybara at a local petting zoo or the art of being an uncommon friend during someone else’s difficult season.  

There is beauty, wit, wisdom, and hope here at the Table today.  Have we missed anything yet?  Listen to see.

Life.  You must be fully present to win.

Featuring “We’ve Got This Hope” by Ellie Holcomb (Used by Permission through Musicbed).

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