Revoice exists to support and encourage Christians who are sexual minorities so they can flourish in historic Christian traditions. They recently held their first in-person conference since 2019, and we gathered to debrief our weekend together in Dallas! Which speakers resonated most with us? What moved us, and what challenged us? Join Tom, Ryan, and Aaron for our recap of Revoice 2021, including an inaugural gender minorities panel that will stick with us for a long time.
Tom welcomes his pastor to the show! Fred shares some tales from a recent road trip with his mom and unpacks his call to ministry, including how he never expected to be a lead pastor. He also describes his "coming in" story: his first interactions with gay people going all the way back to high school and college, and also his learning about "Side B" gay/SSA people in the church. What advice would Fred give to anyone listening who has never come out to a pastor before?
This summer Netflix released Pray Away, a documentary following the lives of former leaders of ex-gay ministries and survivors of conversion therapy. It's a heavy film, filled with heavy topics like abuse and self-harm. This may not be the podcast for you if it hits a bit close to home with your story. But if you watched the film and/or feel ready for our conversation on it, we hope this episode can be a blessing as we walk through the film's heaviness with you.
Tom welcomes back Matt as the technically “season premiere” guest for this next run of YOB ConvoCasts! The guys dive into “pool” workouts, favorite sandwiches, trivia night fortes, with the big meat of this conversation being the topic of Stitch Fix. Tom recently got a seasonal subscription and loves the notion of a stylish surprise; Matt, not so much! Tom also makes a declaration to Matt, effective October 2022, and involving a hot air balloon.
And we're back! After a summer retreat that reunited our supporters after two and a half years away, we return with a brand new YOBcast – with more episodes on the way! This episode we're talking about mountaintops and valleys: those proverbial "everything is bold and clear" and "everything is long and dark" seasons of life. Coming off a YOBBERS retreat is a mountaintop experience for many in our community. How do we come back from experiences like that? And what are some other mountaintop moments we've experienced beyond YOB?
We've returned from our once-again-annual YOBBERS retreat, and oh what a time we had. Over forty of our Patreon supporters drove and flew from around the United States as we converged for a wonderful weekend of laughs, tears, and stories aplenty. We'll be sharing some of those retreat stories on our blog and podcast in the weeks to come.
Dr. Paul Eddy of Bethel University joins us for our "season finale" of sorts to discuss covenant – particularly the covenant of friendship. Paul lays out the components of covenant, including terms and signs and witnesses, and translates this particular covenant to the grander scheme of God's eternal covenant with His people. Afterward Tom, Ryan, and Aaron "debrief" the discussion: do we desire covenant friendships in our lives, or how likely do they seem? What are the draws and challenges of covenant friendship, and should we as gay/SSA believers be concerned about the perception of such friendships?
It's the YOB days of summer, as they say. Normally we don't hold summer retreats, but 2020 (and 2021) have been anything but normal years. As such, because of our repeatedly rescheduled retreat next month, YOB will be taking a little summer break.
In our season finale Tom welcomes back the "Steve Martin" of YOB podcast guests, Nate! Nate catches us up on life as a traveling artist with his giant suitcase of chalk, and he spearheads a conversation on profanity. How have our Christian upbringings impacted our approach to profanity, and is it ever okay for believers to use certain words? We also dive into character flaws and whether we can ever fully overcome those certain traits that come hardest for us. Finally, will Nate ever come back for another YOB podcast? Stay tuned for the season finale cliffhanger!
Tom welcomes back Marshall after a long YOB hiatus! They chat about delicious gourmet pop-tarts, and Marshall catches us up on life post-pandemic, including losing his father. The guys also talk about spiritual family, growing older and staying single, and moving multiple times around the country more for community than careers.