You Asked, Let's Talk.

What happens when you get the thing you thought would finally be enough, and still want more?

Bobby McGraw talks with Joshua Becker, author and founder of Becoming Minimalist, about possessions, achievement, and where we look for security.

Joshua remembers a Saturday spent cleaning his garage while his five-year-old son waited outside for him to play. That moment changed what he wanted to own and how he wanted to spend his time.

But owning less did not end every struggle. Joshua also shares how reaching the New York Times bestseller list left him wanting a higher spot or another week on the list.

He explains how minimalism helped him see Jesus’ teachings about money and generosity differently, and why he looks to God for the contentment achievement cannot give him.

If you keep moving the finish line, this conversation offers a chance to consider what you’re hoping the next thing will do for you.

Key Takeaways

• Possessions can cost more than money. Caring for them can take time and attention away from the people you love.
• Owning less does not automatically end the need to prove yourself. Joshua still recognizes that pull in his accomplishments.
• Minimalism, as Joshua describes it, means owning what you need so you can give more attention to what matters.
• Giving away excess possessions helped Joshua understand Jesus’ teachings as a better way to live, rather than only a demand to sacrifice.
• Joshua finds his foundation for contentment in God’s care. For those curious about Jesus, he suggests exploring a church with someone they trust or reading Mark or John.

Chapter Markers

00:00 - Why More Never Seems Like Enough
05:35 - The Garage Moment That Changed Joshua’s Life
10:00 - Money, Possessions, and the Cost of Wanting More
16:12 - Finding Security in God and Rethinking Jesus’ Teachings
21:28 - Where to Start Exploring Jesus

Resources

• https://joshuabecker.com/ - Joshua’s recommended starting point for his books, projects, and other work.
• Becoming Minimalist - Joshua’s website about intentionally owning less.

Listen to the full episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk, and share this conversation with someone wondering why the next achievement never seems to feel like enough. Have a question of your own?Send it to Clear Faith for a possible future conversation.

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How do you know what you’re supposed to do with your life without letting what you do become who you are?

Leadership expert Brad Lomenick joins Bobby McGraw to talk about calling, identity, work, and what happens when an assignment that once felt right no longer fits.

Brad shares how looking for “breadcrumbs” from earlier in life can reveal gifts and patterns that have been there all along, and why your calling is bigger than any job title or season.

They also explore what it means to remain faithful when your current work does not feel like the best expression of who you are, why relational intelligence matters in an increasingly digital world, and how to think about faith when Christian leaders disappoint you.

For anyone questioning their career, purpose, identity, or faith, this conversation offers a way to think about the season you are in without assuming you have to have the next one figured out.

Key Takeaways

• Look for “breadcrumbs” from your past that reveal the gifts and patterns that come naturally to you.
• Your job is an assignment, not your identity. Calling can remain consistent even as your work changes.
• Faithfulness still matters when your current season does not feel like the perfect fit.
• In an age of AI, curiosity and relational intelligence can make a meaningful difference in how we connect with people.
• Disappointment with Christian leaders does not have to end your exploration of faith. Get curious about where your cynicism comes from and keep asking questions.

Chapter Markers

03:45 - Breadcrumbs Lead to Calling
05:22 - Assignment vs. Calling
06:10 - Be Curious About Your Gifts
09:30 - The Importance of Humble Leadership
11:44 - Who Am I When the Title Changes?
13:52 - When Your Job Doesn’t Satisfy You
16:31 - Relational Intelligence in the Age of AI
17:49 - Spiritual and Vocational Calling
19:07 - Can You Trust Faith After Leaders Fail?
20:58 - How Curiosity Helps You Be Heard
23:29 - Why Christianity?
25:04 - Conclusion and Where to Find Brad

Resources

• H3 Leadership - Brad Lomenick’s book on becoming a more integrated leader.
• H3 Leadership Podcast - Brad recommends his podcast as the best place to follow his current work.
• Have a question about God, faith, or the Bible you have been afraid to ask out loud? Visit http://clearfaith.org/podcast to submit it for a future episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk.

Why do Christians sometimes come across as so judgmental, especially toward people who believe, live, or think differently?

Bobby McGraw sits down with Greg Jao of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship to talk about disagreement, cultural blind spots, curiosity, and what it looks like to hold real convictions without reducing people to their worst ideas.

He also explains why Christians need to acknowledge where the church has caused real harm and why humility can open conversations that defensiveness shuts down.

Keep looking, keep asking questions, and do not let someone else’s failures end your curiosity.

Key Takeaways

• Christians can read the same Bible differently because culture shapes what we notice and what we overlook.
• Curiosity helps us understand people without requiring us to abandon our convictions.
• Christians should be willing to acknowledge and apologize for real harm done by the church.
• Disagreement becomes judgmental when we stop seeing the other person as a whole human being.
• If judgmental Christians have made faith difficult to explore, keep looking at Jesus and keep asking questions.

Chapter Markers

- 00:00 - Welcome to Greg Jao
- 13:02 - How Culture Shapes the Way We Read the Bible
- 19:11 - Why Curiosity Changes the Conversation
- 23:35 - Owning the Church’s Baggage
- 30:21 - How to Disagree Without Being Disagreeable

Links and Mentions

• InterVarsity Christian Fellowship - Greg’s ministry serving students on college and university campuses. Greg recommends it as a place where believers, doubters, and people exploring Christianity can ask questions together.
• Clear Faith Foundation - Have questions about faith, God, or Christianity? Visit https://clearfaith.org to explore honest conversations and resources for the questions that matter most.
• 30-Minute Bible - Want to understand the bigger story of Scripture? Visit https://30minutebible.com for a simple, accessible way to see how the Bible fits together.

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When something painful happens, it is easy to wonder: Did I do something wrong? Is God punishing me?

Bobby McGraw sits down with Suzanne Nadell to explore that question through her story of two cancer diagnoses, years of uncertainty, and a faith that changed along the way.

Suzanne talks honestly about being angry with God, powering through pain, and learning to slow down and process what was happening. She reflects on how suffering clarified her purpose and taught her to receive help from others.

For anyone facing a diagnosis, disappointment, or season that feels unfair, this conversation is a reminder that hardship is not proof that God has abandoned you.

Key Takeaways

• A painful season is not proof that God is punishing you.
• You can be angry or confused with God and still turn toward Him.
• God can bring good from painful circumstances without pretending the pain itself is good.
• Sometimes healing means slowing down instead of outrunning what hurts.
• Other people matter in hard seasons. Let them help carry the weight.

Chapter Markers

00:00 - Welcome to Suzanne Nadell
03:43 - Growing Up With Faith That Felt Like Rules
06:51 - Finding a Faith of Her Own
08:03 - Suzanne’s First Cancer Diagnosis
10:25 - Facing Cancer as a Young Mom
12:34 - What Cancer Did to Her Faith
14:52 - A Second Cancer Diagnosis
16:20 - When Suzanne Got Angry With God
18:24 - What She Did With the Anger
21:02 - The Moment She Finally Stopped and Felt It
24:23 - Is God Punishing Me?
28:23 - How Suffering Changed Her Faith
32:04 - Why God’s Timing Can Feel So Slow
34:31 - What to Do in the Middle of a Diagnosis
40:09 - How Suzanne’s Calling Became Clearer
44:12 - Remember That You Are Loved

Links and Mentions

• Wired to Lead - Suzanne’s book about leadership lessons from the newsroom and leading in the church: https://www.amazon.com/Wired-Lead-Being-Leader-Church/dp/0827243464
• http://SuzanneNadell.com - Suzanne’s book, speaking, and current work: http://SuzanneNadell.com
• Called To All of It - A program for women navigating faith, family, and career: https://suzannenadell.com/called-to-all-of-it-1
• She Leads Church - A community and conference for Christian women in leadership: https://www.sheleadschurch.com/
• CaringBridge - The online journal Suzanne used during her cancer experiences: https://www.caringbridge.org/

Follow You Asked, Let's Talk and share it with someone going through something hard and wondering where God is in the middle of it.

What does God want me to do with my life, especially when the path I’m on no longer feels right? Bobby McGraw sits down with Dr. Jennifer Keitt to talk about success, purpose, waiting, emotions, and recognizing God’s direction when life stops making sense.

At 27, Jennifer had checked every box but still found herself deeply dissatisfied. What followed was her “summer of chaos,” a season that changed the direction of her life.

She shares how waiting, trial and error, Scripture, relationships, and even disorientation helped shape her next steps. For anyone wondering whether they are behind, missing God, or simply unsure what to do next, this conversation offers a different way to think about finding purpose.

Key Takeaways

• Success does not automatically mean you are living the life you were made for.
• Feeling disoriented can be an invitation to pay attention to what is happening beneath the surface.
• Hearing God can look like Scripture, wise questions, trial and error, peace, and taking the next step.
• Purpose usually unfolds over time rather than arriving as a complete roadmap.
• Your emotions can provide important clues as you discern what is happening in your life.

Chapter Markers

00:00 - Welcome to Dr. Jennifer Keitt
03:06 - A New Faith in a Confusing Season
05:26 - The Summer of Chaos
07:17 - When Aloneness Becomes an Invitation
10:22 - What Does It Mean to Hear God?
15:21 - What Abraham Teaches Us About Waiting
16:08 - Why Time Is Not the Enemy
19:16 - How Jennifer’s Purpose Kept Expanding
23:18 - Why Bigger Audiences Did Not Grow Her Faith
24:33 - When Success Feels Empty Again
26:19 - When God’s Math Does Not Make Sense
32:46 - Learning to Lead Yourself First
36:25 - What to Do When You Do Not Know Your Next Step
39:38 - God, Emotions, and Paying Attention
41:11 - What Jennifer Wishes She Knew at 27
42:31 - Learning to Wait for Something New
44:50 - Where to Connect With Jennifer
47:57 - A Final Word for the Journey

Links and Mentions

• Keitt Institute - Jennifer’s work in self-awareness, leadership, emotional health, and personal development: keittinstitute.org
• https://jenniferkeitt.com/ - Jennifer’s personal website.
• Jolt Academy - A Keitt Institute program focused on personal development and understanding how you think, respond, and lead.

Listen to the full episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk, follow the podcast, and share it with someone wondering what God wants them to do next.

Why does God seem angry, violent, or even mean in parts of the Old Testament while Jesus seems so loving?

Bobby McGraw sits down with Old Testament scholar and Oklahoma Baptist University president Heath Thomas to wrestle honestly with that question.

Heath argues that we often begin the biblical story in the wrong place. Before God is described as judge, He is revealed as the Creator and giver of life. From there, the Old Testament tells a larger story of rescue, blessing, discipline, and restoration.

Along the way, Heath explores difficult questions about war, judgment, poetry, doubt, and why following Jesus does not mean having every answer. Sometimes, he says, Jesus is less a simple answer and more the clue we keep following.

Key Takeaways

• The Old Testament begins with God as Creator and giver of life, not as an angry judge.
• God’s relationship with Israel is part of a larger rescue story meant to bring blessing to the world.
• Difficult passages about war and judgment make more sense within the Bible’s larger story.
• Faith does not require an answer to every question. Sometimes “I don’t know” is an honest place to begin.
• Much of the Old Testament is poetry, meant to shape how we see reality rather than simply give us information.

Chapter Markers

00:00 - Welcome to Heath Thomas
02:01 - All of Life, All for Jesus
04:03 - From Rules to Relationship
08:39 - Jesus Is the Clue
10:22 - What Does a Relationship With God Look Like?
14:13 - Personality and the Way We Experience God
16:36 - How Heath Became an Old Testament Scholar
19:20 - Why Does God Seem Angry in the Old Testament?
21:49 - Israel and God’s Rescue Mission
25:18 - A Kingdom of Priests and a Blessing to the World
27:36 - What About War in the Old Testament?
30:25 - Starting the Story With the God of Life
33:03 - Why Did God Allow Us to Sin?
36:10 - Faith When You Do Not Have the Answer
39:03 - Why, How Long, and the Presence of God
41:24 - Are We Reading the Old Testament Wrong?
42:52 - Why So Much of the Old Testament Is Poetry
47:42 - Where to Start Exploring the Old Testament
48:21 - Where to Connect With Heath

Links and Mentions

• The 30-Minute Bible - An accessible introduction to the larger story of Scripture.
• Reading the Old Testament as Christian Scripture - Heath’s book on the Old Testament, God’s character, and its connection to the New Testament.
• Oklahoma Baptist University - Heath serves as president.

Listen to the full episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk, follow the podcast, and share this conversation with someone who has wrestled with the God of the Old Testament or wondered whether difficult Bible passages can still be trusted.

In this first episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk, Bobby McGraw sits down with author and speaker Mark Matlock to talk about spiritual curiosity, church hurt, hypocrisy, and why Jesus is still worth another look.

Mark shares how his posture toward faith conversations shifted from quick, combative answers to relational honesty, and he reflects on the difference between believing Christian ideas and actually knowing Jesus.

For anyone who has been wounded by church, disappointed by religious people, or unsure where to take their questions, this conversation offers a gentle reminder: keep your eyes on Jesus.

Key Takeaways

• Spiritual curiosity is not something to fear. It can be a doorway into deeper faith.
• Faith is more than knowing beliefs about Jesus. It is learning to trust and follow Him.
• Jesus spoke truth without humiliating, alienating, or punishing people with His words.
• Church hurt can go deep, affecting our ability to trust both people and God.
• You do not have to have every answer to take one honest next step toward faith.

Chapter Markers

00:00 - Welcome to Mark Matlock
02:39 - Magic, India, and Relational Faith
06:19 - From “God Said It” to Honest Curiosity
09:15 - Believing Ideas vs. Knowing Jesus
11:30 - Killing the Inner Pharisee
15:09 - Why We Cannot Grow Alone
17:31 - What It Means to Trust Jesus
23:17 - The Image of God and the Ache for More
27:15 - When Church People Let You Down
30:17 - Hypocrisy, Humility, and Community
33:00 - Will You Let Me Be Not Okay?
38:15 - Advice for the Spiritually Curious
40:42 - Alpha and Safe Places to Ask Questions
42:25 - The Longing for Something More
43:53 - What Mark Would Say to Someone Hurt by Church
45:32 - Where to Connect with Mark

Links and Mentions

• Alpha - Mentioned as a helpful, no-pressure place to explore spiritual questions.
• http://WisdomHacker.com - Mark’s work on biblical wisdom and everyday life.
• The Wisdom Hacker on Instagram - Mentioned by Mark as a way to connect.
• Mark Matlock on Facebook - Mark engages in conversations with people from different backgrounds.

Listen to the full episode of You Asked, Let’s Talk, follow the podcast, and send this episode to someone who may still be carrying questions about faith, church hurt, or whether Jesus is worth trusting again.

You Asked, Let’s Talk is a podcast from the Clear Faith Foundation with Honest to God conversations about the Bible and real life.

Maybe you have a faith background, but somewhere along the way the questions started to outnumber the answers. Maybe faith has never felt like a place with room for someone like you. Or maybe you still show up, but there are questions beneath the surface you’ve never quite known where to take.

This podcast begins with the belief that questions are not the problem. Not having anywhere to take them is.

Hosted by Bobby McGraw, each episode starts with a real question from a real person. Then Bobby sits down with authors, scholars, teachers, and everyday people who have thought deeply about that question and have something worth sharing.

No lecture.
No sales pitch.
No pressure to land somewhere before you’re ready.

Just honest conversations about God, faith, Jesus, the Bible, doubt, and the life we’re actually living.

Submit your question at http://clearfaith.org/podcast and subscribe wherever you listen.

You Asked, Let’s Talk.