Some husbands and wives can have a hard time putting a broken marriage back together. Typically, expectations and disappointments create a backlog of unresolved conflict. Unforgiveness sets in, the death toll to any relationship. When a couple gets to this point, pride becomes the unscaleable wall between them. They have lost the vision of Christ and His church in their union. I’ve developed this reflective study to help a couple in this situation to tear down that seemingly insurmountable wall....
Dec 31, 2024•11 min
The cross of Christ has wonder-working power. It can change you and your relationships, but the process is not a passive “let go and let God” exercise. If Christ’s cross is not a practical governing reality in our relationships, we will hurt those we love the most. Though the cross of Christ is not the whole gospel, it’s a poignant reminder of the sacrifice needed to sustain a relationship with someone. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/something-must-come-between-us-or-were-goi...
Dec 26, 2024•9 min
No human has absolute authority over another. This perspective should be common sense, but it’s not for everyone, including Christians. A dictatorial husband and father can put wives and children in a difficult spot, which begs the question that folks have asked me for decades: “Do you think it’s right to correct my authoritarian husband?” This chapter will be instructive and directive for those in this type of relationship. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/do-you-think-its-rig...
Dec 24, 2024•21 min
Shows Main Idea – EMDR stands for Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing Therapy. Though it has been around for decades, it has gained a lot of momentum within Christian circles in the past few years. In this episode, Rick interviews Dr. Rhenn Cherry, a professor at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He explains the history, the suggested benefits, and how the Bible has more effective answers. Watch or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-535-understanding-emdr-with-dr-rhenn-ch...
Dec 22, 2024•1 hr 22 min
Sexual intimacy is one of the quickest indicators that reveals how a couple is doing in their marriage. Why? Because it is the most physical and intimate thing they will ever do together. It is different from talking, dating, dinner, or a movie. Sex requires more. Sex demands more from two people. You can do many things as a married couple and even pretend to get along, but sex is the litmus test that reveals the authentic reality of your covenant. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee....
Dec 17, 2024•18 min
Show Main Idea: A God-centered community provides mutual accountability, encouragement in truth, and prayerful support, helping us to walk in freedom from approval-seeking. Through active support, we can uplift others in their journey to live for God’s approval. This lesson also explores practical ways to keep Christ at the center of our fellowship through serving others and finding joy in God’s truth together. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-535-fear-of-man-cultivating-a-god-c...
Dec 14, 2024•1 hr 3 min
Most relationships begin with transparency, honesty, courage, and optimism. At some point, these things break down. The husband and wife drift from each other, and silence ensues. Even the best intentions derail if the couple does not know how to keep the transforming power of the gospel as the animating center of their relationship. Let me explain. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/do-you-know-what-your-wife-is-thinking-2/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for...
Dec 12, 2024•16 min
Every home has a leader. Someone must be in charge while everyone else follows the de-facto leader. I’m speaking of hierarchy in relationships, not the equality among fellow image-bearers. These concepts work together, not creating tension but fulfilling the possibilities of a God-centered home. As you think about your home, how would you define the orientation? Who is in charge? Who is the rightful person to take the reins of your family? Who do you want to lead? Read, Watch, or Listen: https:/...
Dec 10, 2024•17 min
Show Main Idea: We dive into understanding our identity in Christ, finding security in God’s provision. Through practical steps—confession, renewing the mind, and embracing the fear of God—we’ll learn how the Holy Spirit empowers us to live with freedom from human opinion. With a renewed perspective, we’ll discover how to walk confidently in God’s approval, anchored in His truth. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-534-fear-of-man-steps-to-overcome-approval-addiction/ Will you help...
Dec 07, 2024•1 hr 5 min
How do you know when a desire for love has changed into a need for love? It’s an excellent question, and the first place to begin a diagnosis like this is with anger. Anger is the quickest way to discern if someone’s craving for love has jumped from a desire to a controlling need. It is not necessarily wrong to desire something like love from another, but when a desire becomes all-controlling, we’re in the deep weeds of relationship trouble. One of the ways you will know if your desire for somet...
Dec 05, 2024•18 min
Even with the best intentions and truest love, a marriage can go to some dangerous and dark places. Ours went there, which is why I decided the best thing we could do is blow up our marriage, reboot, and start over again, hoping to rebuild our covenant on a surer foundation. A caveat may appropriately modify the seeming hyperbole you just read. Lucia and I have always been best friends. From the moment we met on July 24, 1994, we clicked. There was hardly a time we didn’t enjoy each other. Thoug...
Dec 03, 2024•20 min
Show Main Idea: This lesson reveals how God’s unconditional love frees us from the trap of seeking human validation. By renewing our minds with Scripture, we cultivate a mindset rooted in His grace. Through practical steps and reflection, we learn to make daily decisions that honor God, prioritizing His glory over human opinion. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-533-fear-of-man-reorienting-your-focus-pleasing-god-over-man/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for e...
Dec 01, 2024•1 hr 2 min
The best marriages are those where the distinct uniqueness of each partner works in a beautiful symmetry that enhances the other’s strengths while compensating for the weaknesses. The worst marriages are those partners who do not know how to help each other become a mature picture of Christ and His church. Their strengths do not support the other spouse, while their weaknesses become annoying interruptions. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/let-me-draw-you-a-picture-of-a-marriag...
Nov 28, 2024•15 min
If you could live your life over again, how would you live it differently? What values would you instill to give yourself a meaningful life? What if you could instill those values now? An excellent way to think about these things is to ask someone—people farther down wisdom’s road than you are. Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/three-life-choices-you-dont-want-to-miss-before-you-die/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? You can become a supporting membe...
Nov 26, 2024•12 min
Show Main Idea: This lesson examines how a misplaced desire impacts our identity, breeds insecurity, and prevents genuine spiritual growth. Through practical self-reflection and biblical insights, we begin learning how to discern this idol, redirecting our hearts toward God’s approval as the true anchor of our identity. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-532-fear-of-man-understanding-the-root-of-approval-addiction/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? ...
Nov 25, 2024•1 hr 3 min
It is easy to make a decision when things seem clear and the future appears bright. With an optimistic heart, you decide on that thing, only to discover months or years later that it may not be wise to do what you did. What if that decision was to marry someone that you now believe was the wrong person? Sometimes, you cannot redo what you believe is a wrong decision. What are you supposed to do now? Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/i-think-i-married-the-wrong-person/ Will you help...
Nov 19, 2024•15 min
Shows Main Idea – Meet Al Haywood, a counselor and pastor from northeast Georgia who has dedicated his life to shepherding others in their walks with God. Al, a Mastermind student, has been using Life Over Coffee’s resources to guide not only his own friends but also fellow pastors in the area. Through the Mastermind Program, he’s gained new biblical tools and insights that are transforming his counseling, ministry, and partnerships with other leaders. God has been at work in incredible ways, an...
Nov 16, 2024•1 hr 4 min
Every person has two heads. The human community is a world of two-headed people. James called our common-to-man predicament double-mindedness, just one of the characteristics that comes with our Adamic packaging. At times, we think and act one way, and at other times, we think and act like a different person. If you find yourself occasionally oscillating between two or more personalities and unable to find your true north, you're normal. Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/how-to-hel...
Nov 14, 2024•21 min
Have you ever tried to be perfect? Is it hard for you to let others know you messed up? Are you tempted to present yourself in ways that are not exactly true to who you are? Maybe when you think about others learning the real truth about you, it strikes momentary fear in your heart. Suppose your spouse brought a friend home unannounced. Does it matter what your home looks like at that moment? Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/torment-is-trying-to-be-perfect/ Will you help us to con...
Nov 12, 2024•15 min
Show Main Idea: Parenting can be challenging, but it’s not an unresolvable puzzle. The Bible offers guidance to help parents lead their families in a Christ-centered way. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-529-webinar-parenting-practically-four-tips-you-can-implement-today/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? You can become a supporting member here https://lifeovercoffee.com/join/, or you can make a one-time or recurring donation here https://lifeover...
Nov 09, 2024•1 hr 1 min
You have made your decision in faith. At the time, it seemed like the right thing to do. Now you're having second thoughts. Is it okay to change your mind? Or are you bound to the decision you have made with no other alternative but to live with the consequences? Is it possible to be in faith for the decision, but things have changed to such a degree that you have the biblical right to change your mind? Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/may-i-change-my-mind-after-deciding-something...
Nov 07, 2024•18 min
Biblical decision-making is not that difficult if you are the only one making the decision. There are challenges, of course, but it's much easier if you're the only one affected by the decision you make. Once the number of contributors to the decision-making process increases and the consequences are broader, it will be more challenging to navigate with humility, clarity, and mutually agreed-upon cooperation regarding the path forward. Having guidelines for couples and friends is crucial. Read, ...
Nov 05, 2024•23 min
Show Main Idea: We will explore the impact of unresolved anger on relationships. Through a gospel-centered lens, we will offer practical tools and biblical wisdom to help us address the root of anger, exchange it for Christ-like patience, and foster an environment of love, forgiveness, and restoration. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-528-webinar-overcoming-anger-how-it-complicates-our-relationships/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? You can becom...
Nov 02, 2024•1 hr 3 min
The gospel practicalized is a transcendent lifestyle that overrides cultural and religious traditions, preferences, and expectations. The convolution between primary and secondary things can be dizzying, especially in a world that works overtime to invert what is good with evil. A practicalized gospel teaches us to live well with others, especially those who make choices that are different from ours. In a world gone mad, all Christians must work hard to distinguish the negotiable from the non-ne...
Oct 31, 2024•18 min
Show Main Idea: Our heavenly Father is the de facto leader of our lives and homes. To build strong marriages and families, we must determine that we will address our life with God, make the necessary changes, and then ask Him to enable us to export our life with Him to those we love. Show Notes: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-527-webinar-follow-the-leader-creating-a-redemptive-community/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? You can become a supporting member h...
Oct 26, 2024•1 hr 3 min
Every four years in America, its citizens have the opportunity to vote for the next President of the United States. It’s the privilege of free countries where the political class serves the citizens, or that is what it says on paper. In America, it’s no longer that way in practice as the government has become the hegemonic power, making the right to vote a fragile and sober time when faith and responsibility intersect at a high level. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/a-christia...
Oct 24, 2024•16 min
This presidential election cycle is my sixteenth. Admittedly, I do not remember the first one because I was one year old, and they would not let me vote. It was 1960. I do remember the second one in 1964, but I had no opinion other than keeping Lyndon Johnson in there since he had not had an entire run. It seemed unfair to replace him. I remember the others and have had varying views depending on my awareness of what was happening. Now, it’s 2024, and here we are: who should we elect as our next...
Oct 22, 2024•12 min
Someone asked me why I share political messages on my personal X account. He then followed up by saying that politics stink. It was not one of those “stay in your lane” questions as much as it was a curious onlooker, a fellow Christian thinking about their role in the political arena. His question is worth exploring, and every Christian who wants to make a difference in their world should evaluate their role in politics and culture. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/why-christia...
Oct 17, 2024•13 min
In the summer of 2018, we were visiting Lucia’s sister in Minnesota when she told us about a nearby Trump Rally in Fargo, North Dakota. Our van just so happened to need a repair, and Fargo was the nearest Toyota dealer, so we decided to attend the rally while in Fargo. It was a memorable night, a bucket list type of event. Read, Watch, or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/went-president-trump-rally-last-night/ Will you help us to continue providing free content for everyone? You can become a su...
Oct 15, 2024•14 min
Show Main Idea: Rick Thomas talks to Dr. Jenn Chen about her latest book, Biblical Counseling and Mental Disorder Diagnosis. Dr. Chen, formerly an integrated psychologist who later received her Master’s in Biblical Counseling, has written an excellent book that is culturally relevant to the dangers of secular psychology. This book is an outstanding tool for all disciple-makers as they engage our brothers and sisters immersed in and influenced by a psychologized culture. Show Notes: https://lifeo...
Oct 12, 2024•1 hr 20 min
