Rhett: 0:00

Imagine a world where every conversation feels like a genuine connection with authentic people. A place where you truly feel like you belong and where everyone gathers here at the table. Friends, welcome to Armchair Authentic.

Justin: 0:18

Well, Brett, it is Thanksgiving week.

Rhett: 0:22

Turkey, turkey week. It's so funny to try to start a conversation when we hit record. You're like, okay. I nailed my hand right when I was gonna tell you.

Justin: 0:31

But it is uh you okay over there? You're getting pretty aggressive. I am it's uh it's Thanksgiving week.

Rhett: 0:38

It is gobble gobble week. I cannot believe it. It's my favorite week of the year.

Justin: 0:43

Gobble gobble. Gobble gobble. Almost watched.

Rhett: 0:45

By the way, I'd never say gobble gobble. That that just came out my mouth. I know my name's four shots. That's four shots of espresso talking.

Justin: 0:55

I'm so close to the edit button, but I'm I'll allow it. Gobble gobble week. Yeah. We almost last night watched this, it doesn't have to do with Thanksgiving. It's later in February, but I don't know why gobble gobble it made me think of um Groundhog Day. Don't know why. Groundhog turkey is so different. I love Groundhog. Instead, we opted to watch for the 20,000th time, probably Dan in real life. Yeah. Isn't that a good one? It is. Yeah, it's we talked about it. We love that one, right?

Rhett: 1:26

Here's what I like about it. Number one, it feels authentic. It feels like it's very relatable to all the family dynamic and the crazy and the toxic. Yeah. Um, I feel like the what's the actor's name? Uh Steve Carrell. Steve Carell. Yeah. I just feel like he I don't know. If you ever see a real, like, I don't he's such a great actor, yeah, that either he's acting, but it doesn't feel like he's acting. Yeah. Like it almost feels like it could really be him, you know? It does. As far as kind of maybe more of his character and his nature. Man, we could hang out.

Justin: 1:59

You see somebody on a stage and you think, yeah, man, I can hang out with that guy.

Rhett: 2:04

But the ideal of getting your family together over on holidays at like an Airbnb somewhere next to a lake, and you're all just even with all your issues and just trying to have a good time and work through it. And I mean, like it just seems very ideal in the mindset of a dreamer to go, how cool would it be to have a big family to be able to like even in all our mess get together and have a good time?

Justin: 2:31

We talk about just the way we grew up. We've been watching anything like that, yeah, where it's families, we probably project what we would like our future to look like. And I think that's why at least we enjoy those that type of time more than anything. It came out, if I'm if I'm right, you know, someone listening can check me on this later, but it came out in 2007. I'm almost positive.

Rhett: 2:55

In the music to it, I'm it's very yeah. Yeah, yeah. Oh wow, you have seen it a lot. Put it on my tab. Yeah, put it on, excuse me? Put it on my tab.

Justin: 3:10

When you got the ticket. Yeah, so if you haven't seen it, it is about a single dad, a widower, yeah, who four years previously had lost his wife. Two daughters. And he has three daughters.

Rhett: 3:22

Oh, yeah, that's right. He has three. Yeah, yeah, that's right. The little one, I forget about her. That's right. Yeah, yep.

Justin: 3:26

And um, but yeah, so just the whole movie. And evidently, the more I watch it grow. I mean, when we me and Summer first saw it in 07, we went to the theater, we thought it was really fun.

Rhett: 3:35

Yeah.

Justin: 3:36

And we really honestly, we haven't seen it probably in four or five years. But just we were just feeling it like last night. Let's do something different than like our normal shows that we watch. And we did, but I told Summer, I said, This is so different now. Yeah. When your kids are around the age of the, you know, the three daughters, because it's like the oldest is Dax's age, the middle is Kai's, and then the youngest is in between Britt and Ben's age. Yeah. And you see just even the attitudes, the just all the normal stuff.

Rhett and Justin: 4:09

You are a murderer of love.

Justin: 4:11

If you haven't seen it, it's the I do recommend it. It's clean, it's good.

Rhett: 4:16

Yeah, you know, it is clean for the most part, um, overall. It's I mean, you know, there's some just suggestive stuff in there for sure. But like what I mean is um it's just it if you like psychology or the study of people and humanity and just the like any, I don't know, the ideal of let's take all the crazy you could possibly think of in a family, and that brings maybe not dissension, but uncomfortable uh discomfort. Discomfort, thank you. Yeah, um, yeah, it's all in it. And it's just it's funny.

Justin: 4:51

It's I don't know, it's just very related to the true story of reaching humility at the yeah or humiliation only to hopefully be lifted up.

Rhett: 5:01

And so for the week of Thanksgiving, you know, I were they gathering for a Thanksgiving meal?

Justin: 5:05

No, or was it when you first watched the movie? It seems like wow, they must do this all the time. Yeah. But when you hear these little side comments from like the kids, or I'm paying attention to that. And I told Summer last night. I said, Did you hear the line that the little girl just said? She was like, What? It was just so faint in the background. But she says, We do this every year to help grandma and grandpa close up the house because they live up in Rhode Island and they close it down. They probably are snowbirds, so they're probably going somewhere south for the winter. Yeah. And you don't think about those dynamics. Yeah. But that's anyway. So it's so that was cool.

Rhett: 5:44

No offense to my friends that live up north, and that's a real thing. And so, you know, what does it say about where you live when you you can only live there for almost half a year and then you gotta close it down and move down where we live. Yeah.

Justin: 6:04

We're willing to get swampy, sweaty. We're we're okay with that. With where we live all year.

Rhett: 6:10

No, and I I say that, and I'm dear friends from California, Northern California, living in Idaho, Utah, Montana, that those type of places. So um, I get it. I the the feeling is real because you get you live in that place 75% of the year, it's like, oh man, this is the greatest place on the earth. Like where we were at the men's retreat. It's like, oh my god, you don't want to be there right now. Yeah. No. You would like you you'd be like, nope, I'm out.

Justin: 6:33

Get a quick ski trip in and go home. Yeah. That's about all. Yeah. So anyway. Well, when I think of Thanksgiving too, anytime you just see uh the space where people are making mills, and just that's another one of those ideal situations. And I will say I finally took the step that I've been wanting to take for a while. I love grilling. We we've talked about this many times. I'll grill, you know, a couple, maybe three times a week.

Rhett: 7:00

Okay, so you just took the step to grill.

Justin: 7:03

So what I'm about to say, I did kind of shift there. I was like, wait a minute. The statement I want to make is I love to grill and I've done that all my life. Yeah. I've always had a grill. There's always burgers, steak, whatever. I grill and I do it well. I've done it long enough to just get good at it. But I have wanted for probably, I don't know, four or five years, I've wanted one of the griddle tops, like the blackstones. Yeah, black.

Rhett: 7:30

Yeah, blackstone. Yeah.

Justin: 7:31

And so, matter of fact, a shout out to a friend, Barry Lane.

Rhett: 7:34

Oh, Barry.

Justin: 7:35

Barry, by the way, that dude. That dude's awesome. Yeah. We went to high school together. He played goalkeeper. When I stepped out, he stepped in. Man, awesome dude. But more importantly, that guy at the church that we cook to at Church of the Highlands, he and his wife and all their kiddos, they got a billion of them. Yeah, they serve Highlands kids. I mean, that that brother, yeah, he's at the door every time. So all my life of having Dak, Sky, Britt, and Ben, I'll get to see Barry like seems like every Sunday. Is he at Grant's Mill? Grant's Mill. He went to Tuscaloosa back in 07, 8, 9, 10 when we launched it. That's where my mind there every week. But Barry one time mentioned we were talking about grilling, and he's he's the one who said, You man, I went with a black stone. It is amazing. And so, you know, it's pricey too, but I just kind of held out. And so this past Sunday went and got a blackstone. Let's go. Got it, got it seasoned, got it.

Rhett: 8:36

Is it really grilling though? It's more like a pancake griddle. Like you can make pancakes on it and eggs on it. Anything on it. Yeah.

Justin: 8:43

But like it doesn't give you grill marks though. It doesn't give the grill marks, but you can buy some of these little appliances that set it down and give a grill mark.

Rhett: 8:52

Okay, gotcha.

Justin: 8:52

I don't need the grill mark though, because if you go to Ruth Chris or if you go to Fleming's, they don't have grill marks. I mean, those are like griddles that they're it's like glorified pan seared steaks you're really getting. So anyway, it was awesome. So for uh my nine-year-old's birthday, usually kids want pizza stuff like that. And he said he wanted a like for me, my dad, my brother, we'll do a celebration with the family. Yeah. Not like the classmates, but the family. Yeah. On Sunday night, he wanted a a steak dinner for his birth nine-year-old birthday party. And so gotta give a shout out to pop pop. He went to the store for the family and invested in the meat, all this stuff.

Rhett: 9:35

And um I got to see your dad, first time in a long time. Same day.

Justin: 9:39

You saw him, yeah, at the movies, and you saw him after. And uh I was like, dude, this is what Justin's gonna look like at 80 years old. Same out. He's happy, he's happy.

Rhett: 9:48

Always happy, happy, joy, joy. Hey, got his ball cap on. Oh man, he just loves it. I was like, man, come on, Mr. And I I think I don't know, he's met Max before, but I would kind of read him around. Yeah, and I said, Max, this is Justin's dad, Mr. Bill. And he's like, hey, Mr. Bill, nice to meet you. Because I always thought, you know, I'm teaching my son respect and trying to call people Mr. He'll call you Mr. Justin. Yeah, you know, and there will come a time without a fall off as he gets older for sure. But in uh in when he said that, my son's not gonna have any reference to SNL and Mr. Bill.

Justin: 10:22

Oh, Mr. Bill! Oh yeah.

Rhett: 10:24

Okay was that SNL or was that like Comedy Central Africa? No, that was SNL, little Mr. Bill, the little like uh claymation thing. Uh oh no, oh Mr. Bill, you want to go over here? Anyway, that's where my mind went, and it it went in for a second and it left just as fast as it went in. I was like, I gotta say Mr. Bill. I was like, Yeah, yeah, that kind of sounded funny coming out of my mouth. Yeah, introducing your dad as Mr. Bill.

Justin: 10:48

It was fun that you got to see him anyway. But yeah, it was definitely the highlight when we're all kind of hanging outside the the main auditorium. But yeah, yeah, so we did a steak dinner and I mean we prepped that. My brother is a great he's also a great cook. We come from a line of cooking. Your brother's a great cook? Oh, yeah. Okay. That makes sense.

Rhett: 11:06

Oh, is fantastic. I wonder how many people are just now going, I didn't know Justin had a brother.

Justin: 11:11

Uh no, a lot of people. But I mean, probably most of the listeners, but the contingents you know that listen around our area would know. Yeah. Um, but um so you had a good time. You got the black. We we come from like a grandfather. He was Raymond, I was named after Raymond J. Isley. So he was phenomenal. Like he ran around with like Justin Wilson, who was like the do you remember the Cajun cook? No, I guarantee.

Rhett: 11:38

I I've I've heard that, but I didn't know. Justin Wilson. Oh, okay.

Justin: 11:42

Which is ironic. I'm named after Justin Wilson. Yeah, that's cool. And so Raymond after my dad. So I'm named after two cooks Raymond, Justin, Bradshaw. Okay. And so I used to be a good one.

Rhett: 11:53

It just took you 47 years to get back to uh getting something you can cook on.

Justin: 11:58

Yeah, well, the grill, I mean has been a lot of joy, but yeah, I want to do more outdoor stuff, but like pancakes, I want to be able to make breakfast on a griddle outside. I want to be able to do when we go to Japanese steakhouses. I want to be able to do the fried rice and then chop the steak up with the knife and like yeah, right there on it. I want to be out there by myself and build a daggum little onion volcano and make a little choo-choo train and be out there playing with my toys.

Rhett: 12:28

Every single Japanese restaurant I've gone to around the country, it's the same. They come out going ching ching ching ching ching with their like all the knives and stuff, you know, and cling, cling, cling, cling cling cling cling cling cling cling. And then I'm like, okay, all right, here it goes.

Justin: 12:42

And then, you know, you almost feel to honor them, you need to watch because if you don't, you feel like you dishonor them. Yeah, you're like, okay.

Rhett: 12:48

So you're like, oh, I never seen that before. Then they do the little choo-choo train out of the onion. Yeah. And then they take the moment with the shrimp and they're like ding ding ding ding ding. And all of a sudden they're like, you want, and then they flip it to you to try to get it, and you know, so you catch it. Make you look like an idiot. Yeah, and it hit you on the forehead. You're like, oh man, I just spent $25 on that thing you just threw on the ground. And then there's always like, oh, you want some extra? They make you feel special at the end, giving you. Here's another piece. I'm like, yeah. It's so good. Yeah, it's fun. So I want I want to master. I always get the steak in the hibachi shrimp or something like that.

Justin: 13:19

Yeah, it's good. So good. So I want I would like to learn these variations that I've not been able to do before. So 2026 should be me taking a step out into so did you pre-season the black stone?

Rhett: 13:31

Oh, yeah.

Justin: 13:31

Like you would you put salt and pepper on it and turn it up? What do you oil? I got yeah, olive oil. You can tell I probably should have used some cheaper stuff. We got this really good olive oil. We got the $30 bottle and then the $50.

Rhett: 13:45

Should you go through the whole thing?

Justin: 13:46

No, but you you don't have to use as much as you would think. But we put that on it and just seasoned it, rubbed it down like with a paper towel. Okay. And then you let it, you let the heat dissipate. Okay. And then you do it again. Okay. So we like put three layers. Okay. I mean, before we cooked, I was an hour just appreciating and prepping this grill. How long is it gonna stay clean though? Well, I hope I just got my tools in yesterday. I had to do the first uh cooking without the nice utensils. But last night I just had delivered all the like when you're seeing the Japanese steakhouse, the little long spatula looking things. I don't even know what they're called. The utensils. I got that. I've got the metal where you can like brush off the food really good to get the grill uh clean. So yeah, we're we're all in. I got two of these squirt bottles that you just get the water doused. So we're really trying to do it right. Some are supposed to get me like a like the smash burger thing that we can squish the burgers with and then like a pancake. The thing that will squirt the pancakes out in the circles.

Rhett: 14:54

You know, it's funny. When I think about buying something, whatever the cost is, it's never the cost. There's always so much more that goes with it. So for instance, you're talking about a Black Friday. Yeah, you're right. Oh, that was a Black Friday deal. I don't know how much it costs you. Uh, it could have been $300, $500, $800, whatever it is.

Justin: 15:16

It wasn't eight.

Rhett: 15:16

Okay. I I know how much a uh Weber grill costs. And on sale, we got one for like $800.

Justin: 15:21

We had like a good one for like it was between it was around that four to five number. Yeah, okay. So and we got a deal.

Rhett: 15:27

But it's well, now you gotta buy the propane tank. And now you gotta buy that. Now you gotta buy the the cleaner stuff. And so when I hear you saying the black zone, oh you know, I can just imagine you know, me going, oh babe, but it's only five hundred dollars. Right. It's like, well, is it really? Because now you're gonna have to have all the stuff that you just listed, like $30 olive oil bottle, all the utility knife and the scraper and the smasher, and the next thing you know, it's like it's really a thousand. It is, yeah, it's another thing. I need to get a cover for it.

Justin: 16:00

There's always a hard cover, need a soft cover. Exactly. Yeah, it's always something. And and by the way, uh it's probably gone now, but there is a old grill sitting on my curb that I set out. You got the word free written on it. We were gonna put free. Nobody put it. But then we need to put the word free. You don't put anything, someone will steal it. Like that they ah, suckers. Yeah, yeah. But it's got some work that they need to put into it. But there is a grill outside my house. I put it on the city.

Rhett: 16:27

You just need to put a 25 bucks, first come, first serve, OBO, you know, or best offer, and then watch it disappear. Exactly. You put free on it, they're like, ah, something's wrong with it. Exactly. That's why we didn't put a free seal.

Justin: 16:38

Isn't that just the psyche on the thing? We're gonna try to uh entice the psyche of a thief to come take our grill because I don't want to go dump it anymore. Yeah, well, yeah. Man, the price of dumping these days. Yeah, I know. I got my sources that I'm going to break this down and go go throw it into a dumpster. I okay that I have permission from, and I'm not going to dispel that place. I'm I'm gonna say this.

Rhett: 17:02

You can probably guess this is this, you know, what do they say? Confession is good for the soul, bad for the reputation. Yes. But I'm gonna be very honest and very real here for a second. The best places to be able to dump anything. And I don't mean on the ground. I mean in the right way, in the right in the nice bit. Or local churches. And I don't mean this. We appreciate it. I just I just like my son, okay, like there's a bunch of grass and we bag grass when we cut grass. Don't don't sound by me. Let me finish the statement. So he'll do that. And then I'm like, just take it to the local church that we don't we don't go to this local church, but we you know, arguably we are the body of Christ. So we are one. All right, and everybody that's judging me right now, don't judge me because I know you've done this. But I'm curious if you've ever gone this next step. Yeah, okay. So we we take things down, cardboard, whatever. They got a cardboard recycle one, and this one, and and there's first of all, there's no sign that says don't use this trash can. Sure. It doesn't, not nothing like that. And so I'm like, well, it's a beautiful service to our community. It's a very small church, and it's I live in a very small town. And so nobody's ever there. It's completely empty. Okay. And so we'll take our you know, we we pay for trash service, but just like a you know, like you're talking about, right? Yeah. Um, I've never thrown a grill away there, you know, but it'll probably be something I would do. Yeah. Break it down into some pieces. Yeah.

Justin: 18:36

So you can lift it up at the end.

Rhett: 18:38

And and you're about might be asking, well, why don't you take it to Church of the Highlands garbage dump? Well, because I can't access that because you know, it's like walking onto a place that's got 25,000 million cameras and what you doing here? You gotta know somebody that knows somebody that knows somebody. So I told my son, if anybody ever asks, you know, and gives you a hard time and you're throwing something away, just say, Well, I'm a part of the church. You don't have to tell them this church, I'm just a part of the church, the body of Christ. And uh you know, we can tithe and and give our offering to the local church. Oh yeah, yeah. So like I was like, at the end of the day, if it's one of those things to where because it's so little, and I know one person doesn't, next person doesn't, next person doesn't, yeah, you know, next thing you know, they don't have the space that they need. So we're not over there hogging their whole garbage dump.

Justin: 19:30

Sure. But they got they got space. Yes, fulfill that I mean unless it's around this time of year, which is Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Rhett: 19:37

Yeah, so I'm like, you know what we're gonna do? We're gonna bless them financially for the year of garbage service that we've gotten. So we're gonna give them, we're gonna donate some money to them this Christmas for that. That's nice. Yeah. Yeah, so we're gonna go online and we're gonna give some money to them, and they'll be like, where did this money come from? And you're gonna be like, it came from your grass business. Yeah, that's really what he's been using it for, is just throwing another. If they ask, it's gonna be like it's just a part of your business expense, is giving to that church to pay for the yeah, to pay for the yeah. So they anyway, before you judge me and make me a bad human, we're giving back, is what I'm trying to say.

Justin: 20:13

Well, I'll tell you this confession is good. There was a time, by the way. Yeah, here's here's more confession. Yeah, I did not know, so we're dating years back now. Okay. I I didn't know. It cost money. I didn't know well, no, I didn't know that. Well, yeah, I knew it cost to go dump it somewhere, like at a site that's made for that.

Rhett: 20:31

Yeah.

Justin: 20:33

I don't know, don't know why. I never knew it was illegal to just go like put your trash in somebody else's can. Not even a neighbor. I mean more like I need something a little more hefty, like a business, like behind a Best Buy or something. Oh, okay. Never never knew that. They'll have these large garbage cans out there. Where does it say it's illegal? I don't know. Never seen it. Yeah. Now maybe there's a sign and I refuse to not read it. I don't know. It's I just know that I drive back, I'll drive back behind some of these um you know, mini mars or whatever, mini moss, and I'll and I'll just dump it. I've always done that. In the garbage dumpster. Yeah. And where, you know, obviously, you know, and trying to I get to when they have garbage cans out over the years of construction, because I would always live near like our Grant Smell location. Yeah. Always giving the permission. Hey, just make sure if it's boxes, break it down. I would give in I was I was given instruction and I did that and it was great. Yeah, but it's not always there when a construction you know project's done. So it's like, well, I need a garbage now. So one time I borrow a trailer because I want to give tons of stuff to the Vapor Thrift Store. You know, for those who's not in Birmingham, it's obviously a thrift store, it's a ministry. It's like really, I mean, but a cool, yeah, cool ministry they have. But I would go give tons of stuff, so I needed like a trailer, so I borrowed a trailer. Oh boy, oh boy. Yeah, which which which would have another license plate on it. Okay, and so just use your imagination where it was, don't make me say it. And so I'm borrowing uh their trailer, a place I'm very close to for years. Yeah, probably said it a while ago. Um and I'm dumping up, I'm not not dumping this stuff, I'm putting the giveaways to vapor awesome. I couldn't have carried all this stuff without it. Thank you for letting me use it. Now I have a thing of trash that I'm just gonna go ahead and run it. At this time, I didn't even know it's not available at the place I went to. At our newer campus that was under construction, the the big garbage was gone. So then I take it to like one of my behind the store kind of places.

Rhett: 22:50

So you got that you got the church name on this trailer.

Justin: 22:53

If this organization is said, this nonprofit, yeah, 501c3.

Rhett: 22:58

But I do have a trailer. Uh yeah, you're watching it. And and so there is this, there's this guy.

Justin: 23:05

Yeah. There's this guy who owns this clothing store. Oh boy. And I drive by and I noticed it, like I, you know, I go, you know, dump the stuff out. Now I'm turning around. Yeah. He has a camera. He's got he's recording me as I drive by, and I'm like, oh man. Like this is not just anyway, this is another tag attached to this. Yeah.

Rhett: 23:36

No, but he's recording.

Justin: 23:38

I think he's ready to like call whoever he needs to to say, hey, this person's dumping this stuff. I immediately, I'm like, oh, I do not ever want to dishonor you know, the the crew that let me use the trailer. So I call the person over our security. Tell them the situation. And I'm like, I just need you to know this. I I didn't know I wasn't supposed to go dump this, but um, I have camera on me and it makes me think something was wrong. Yeah, but it could tie back to this name. Yeah. He said, Where was it? And I told him he was like, Oh, that's so and so, so and so. And he basically said, Let me give him a call. Because the off the guy I'm talking to is in law enforcement forever. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And he handles a lot of this stuff, yeah. And we have probably given a lot, a lot, a lot, yeah, you know, in the sense of business. Yeah. And he said, Let me give a call, you're all right. So he called the guy for me and just said, Hey, just so you know, that was yeah, that that that guy was an okay guy.

Rhett: 24:44

Okay.

Justin: 24:44

Because I just didn't want to dishonor. But then I talked to him, I was like, by the way, next time, yeah, is that not okay to do? He's like, Well, technically it's illegal to dump garbage into another like that's not yours. Rhett, I had no idea. Well, I would I think there's a gray area there. There's probably a gray area, but when I hear that, I thought, you know me, the rule follower. Okay. I'm like, I can't do that.

Rhett: 25:11

Here's the gray area. When you walk into any establishment, you know, brick and mortar, nine times out of ten, what do they have outside the place? Garbage cans. Yeah. Is it illegal to throw trash in that can?

Justin: 25:24

No, because they want you to get rid of your junk so that you don't put it in the store.

Rhett: 25:29

Well, they also have it. You can think of it, well, when you leave the store, you could throw your junk in it too. But like at the end of the day. Well, the law might be if there's a garbage out front, you can use it. If it's out back. Well, there's no law. Now, there are signs, and if they specifically say on the sign, you do not have permission to throw something into this because it's private property or whatever, you know. Okay. Well, there you go. Well, sure. I never saw those signs if they even existed. Well, they're supposed to be on the dumpster itself. Right. Well, you know, you just try not to read all the things. Well, yeah, I just like man, that's what I just ain't got time to read. I ain't got time to read that job.

Justin: 26:02

I just need to throw my my my trash away. I don't know what that says, but I'm gonna look away. It's a red sign. I don't need to know what that red sign says. It's got a lot of things.

Rhett: 26:13

I know there's a bobwire fence here and there's a lock on this gate. Well, there's no sign that says I can't enter this property. Yeah. I mean, why not just break that lock off? We ain't got time to read. Walk in and shoot a deer and walk out. I mean, there's no I I don't see that small little 10 by or 8x12 sign that says private property on it because I didn't see it. Well, there you go.

Justin: 26:35

Well, once he told me, yeah, I he did, I was like, okay, that change never have done it since then because he told me that. But he did say for me, yeah. He was like, hey, anytime you know we have this, as long as you just kind of pack it up, bring it here. Said, no, I didn't. I thought all the construction, yeah, I didn't see the garbage. He said, Well, there's this other one right here. I mean, you're you're welcome to use it.

Rhett: 27:00

Isn't it amazing?

Justin: 27:00

That has been my place. Praise the Lord.

Rhett: 27:03

So dumping, uh you don't realize how much crap you have until you realize how much crap you have when you're going through and cleaning and like the dumpster thing. Yeah, some uh odd equipment, going back to the fact that the reason we talked about it is you're putting your grill out on the street for somebody to take. It was confession allergy. Yeah. And so, um, but yeah, like to me, like if I've got a large dumpster and it's empty and I'm not using it, and somebody comes up and he's like, Man, throw, throw it away. Who cares? Yeah, I don't care. But like if you take advantage of it and you're constantly filling it to the brim and I can't use it, like I've got a neighbor one time he said, Hey, can I throw some stuff in your trash can? I was like, Yeah, like because it's not full. Right. And yours is overfilled. And instead of you waiting a whole nother week, yeah, you know, throw it in there. Throw it in there. I don't care. Now, if you fill the whole thing up and I don't have room for my trash, well, I mean, that's another conversation. I'm not gonna get mad. I'll be like, hey, you know, can we talk? Because you need you need me to buy you another trash can. What you know what I mean? Like, what's going on over there? You know what I mean? But I'm not, I'm I I refuse to be that like irritable old man. Oh, keep get off my grass. Don't use my trash can. You know, we don't know where that voice came from. Well, it's a good old man voice. It's a good old man voice. Yeah, that guy's probably listening to the age of lions. Hey friends, if you're enjoying today's conversation, could you do us a huge favor? Would you share the link of this episode with a friend, with a coworker, with a buddy? I email it, airdrop it, text it, comment on Facebook, however, you would like to share it. Man, it would mean so much to us to help us get the word out to have more friends join us in on this journey. Thank you. All right, now back to the conversation. Speaking of Agent Lions podcast, uh, we just had the opportunity to be a guest on there and we mentioned it last week, but we didn't know when it was going to be released. But it actually, by the time you hear this one, it released last Tuesday. That's right. And uh I haven't man.

Justin: 29:04

I mean, I've I've listened to a little bit on my drive in, but yeah.

Rhett: 29:08

Well, about the time this releases, we'll have listened to the whole thing. I oh yeah, I bet. Oh yeah.

Justin: 29:13

I can safely say it was a great episode.

Rhett: 29:15

So go to Age of Lions podcast. Yeah, listen to it. Um if you're a friend of this show, you know. Anyway, go support it. It was fun.

Justin: 29:23

Good times. Yeah, it was fun. Um but yeah, so that was my spiel of the grill and now the griddle. You're a poet and you don't know it. I don't.

Rhett: 29:32

What robs the griddle? Fiddle. Well, man, Biddle.

Justin: 29:41

Yeah.

Rhett: 29:42

Uh I mean, just other words.

Justin: 29:44

I'm trying to Little? Little. Yeah, I mean you could use that in a song. It would work. Yeah.

Rhett: 29:51

Yeah. You you you you work really hard to try to write songs that don't rhyme. I know you do. You do use some rhyming words.

Justin: 30:00

And theming, but you work hard trying to if it has the same vowel variation, like it sound has the same sound, but it might not end on the same stuff. There's a way to make those. Yeah, it's like uh feels a little more imminentistic.

Rhett: 30:14

They were like, How do you make how do you rhyme with orange? Orange.

Justin: 30:17

Yeah.

Rhett: 30:17

And I'm like, Have you heard that little meme or that little thing or whatever? He's like, and he starts listening. Oh, you can rhyme any rhyme anything with orange. And then what? And he's like, I can't even do it because my mind doesn't work that way. But he's able to take words that don't even sound like orange, but say them in a way that make it sound like it rhymes with orange.

Justin: 30:34

Yeah, exactly. Or start with a word that would end like orange and then throw the second half of the word onto the next line. Yeah. Yes. Yeah, anyways. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So anyway, so Thanksgiving week. Yeah, beat my griddle. I'm ready to make some meals for some friends, and that's all I gotta say about the griddle. I really don't want to stop, but I do know that there's more to talk about. Is there? There's gotta be. Thanksgiving. I will Thanksgiving week. Well, and if you listen last week to Thanksgiving. If you I'm sorry, if you listen last year to our, I think it was called the one about Thanksgiving.

Rhett: 31:11

Okay. Yeah.

Justin: 31:12

We talked about what we did leading the things we enjoyed. I love like well, I love going to the yard and blowing all the leaves off. I mean making it like perfect for 30 minutes before all the leaves fall back on it. They do, yeah, but it looks good for Thanksgiving Day. I do that. Got the Macy's Day parade in the background.

Rhett: 31:28

Yeah.

Justin: 31:29

It's that time. I don't mean that.

Rhett: 31:30

I can't remember the last time I really watched the parade.

Justin: 31:33

Two in two days from now, three days from now, I will be I'm gonna be like spraying off those leaves, man. It's gonna look good. And yeah.

Rhett: 31:42

My wife has really um brought to my forefront like kind of this the meaning and of why Thanksgiving is so much more special than Christmas to us. And I probably said this last year and the year before, whenever. But what we love about Thanksgiving, and what I didn't realize that she brought again to my attention was that Thanksgiving is like it's Christmas without the pressure of the gifts. It's like you get this opportunity where you just get to come together, be together, hang out, laugh, eat, watch football, you go outside, play with the kiddos, whatever, you know, without any type of social pressure or cultural pressure to be like, oh, the gift. I gotta get a gift. No, the gift is just being together. Yeah, that's the gift. And that's what is so beautiful about the community and whether you're doing a friends giving or a family giving. It's my favorite week of the year. It really, to me, I can't even believe we're here already.

Justin: 32:44

Off work. I'm off work this week. Oh, that's good.

Rhett: 32:47

Oh, just taking it all off. Man, I'm I'm trying to get to where I'm not having to work this week. Yeah. I got I feel like I'm gone for the next three weeks in December, and I've got all this to do before I get to it. You've got a lot going on there. Yeah, and and uh anyway, but Thanksgiving, I'm just grateful. So, you know, grateful for you, grateful for our friendship, obviously grateful for the Lord. None of this is in order, but grateful for my wife, grateful for my son, grateful for all that Jesus has done, grateful for our friends who are listening and have been on this journey with us as we get ready to close this chapter.

Justin: 33:20

Yeah.

Rhett: 33:20

Um, you know, to uh up to the hundred hundredth episode. Grateful, man. I'm just so grateful. I mean, literally trying to wake up every day um just thinking through the little things, you know, the little moments and being grateful for every little moment. Yeah, I didn't say that I'm grateful for every circumstance, because that don't matter, my gratefulness and my my inner peace, if you will, of what God does inwardly in us through the transformation, the power of the Holy Spirit with walking with Jesus. It's like despite what I'm going through, despite whatever season of having more, having less, difficulty, pain, it doesn't matter. Like inwardly, I can still be grateful. Like those situations, the circumstances don't dictate my gratefulness. Yeah. I get to choose that. Yeah. And I'm in control of my gratitude. That's good. And I'm so not leaning on because some people might be listening, go, well, it's easy for you to be grateful right now in this season. Everything's, you know, whatever. Rainbows, butterflies, unicorns, perfect world, you know. Um, you're looking through the world through rose-colored glasses. I'm like, no, man, like I've I've just there's something dynamic and something special that happens when you walk with the Lord and you center everything on that. Man, it just gives you the ability to be grateful no matter what you're going through. Yeah. And that's why Paul says, so rejoice. And again, I say rejoice. I agree. Let's be thankful in all circumstances. Set your mind, and it's more than positive thinking, it's just aligning your spirit according to what God, who God is and what he's doing, despite whatever might be happening outwardly.

Justin: 34:57

Yeah, this is for me, it's always a reflective time when I think about October, November, December, especially the the latter two. And I agree wholeheartedly the gratitude side of not really letting your circumstances, you know, dictate what those are. Yeah. Um, I would say this year feels different for some reason. You know, the gratitude's there, but usually there's a lot of dreaming. There's a lot of you know, excitement, I would say. Yeah. You know, I'm pretty excitable, so I don't want to make it seem like I'm just like blah. I'm not that at all. But I am in this, I think about when you were saying that a while ago, like Paul, when he when he makes that statement of he's being, he feels like he's being poured out, you know, even like an offering. Yeah. Right now I'm in that season where it just it feels like there is a and it leads to something that is the Lord, but it feels like there is a the the pic when I journal, it's like I get this picture. I try to write it out so I can always go back to it this time next year and just see how things change. But it feels like a pouring out of like there's not a lot of um, there's not a lot of physical energy to lock in to go, man, this next year is gonna be amazing. Like there's not a lot of that. I'm trying not to qualify because I want to get through the the thought, but it just feels like there's a pouring out to to let some stuff be removed. And that has a lot to do spiritually too with me. There's a there's a there's a deep humbling time going on right now, just in my own spirit. Can't put my fingers on it, but I've also tried to learn not to try to explain everything. Yeah, there's just a pouring out that's happening, and at the same time, I feel like I'm going through this. I I think of, you know, he makes all things new. He we're made new. What we think of Jesus and what the He, what the Holy Spirit, what what God is doing in our life, He's He wants to make us new. So I feel like there is this emptying, but at the same time, you hear the example of wineskin. You can't put something in an old wineskin. And so it's almost like the wineskin of my my body, if you will, is being made new.

Rhett: 37:24

Yeah.

Justin: 37:26

Because there's something about to be poured into it. That's the that's the picture I get, but it's not yet. It might be being poured, but I'm not having like the the um emotional reaction to it. Emotionally, there's it's almost a very numb kind of feel. But what doesn't change is what shot up is scripture, prayer, worship, getting behind the piano, literally opening up my Bible to the book of Psalms, and I'll just go through which one seems to capture me in that moment. And quite honestly, the ones that kind of or the ones that capture me right now aren't the ones that are more of the excitable ones. It it's more of those that we probably aren't gonna sing in church, but the church, you know, the the body that is in well, well, the church that is my my house. Yeah, it's being sung there, you know, where I'm just putting some chords together and I'm literally just singing these psalms and lamenting and just really exercising that gift and that ability to really be able to let everything not feel okay in that moment, but still getting back to what you were saying, but still have a sense of I am very grateful. Like this does not have anything to do with my gratefulness. It's using the years of of being surrendered to Christ to look at it now and say, like he's been faithful. Yeah. Every season, and when I've experienced this, I at least can look back to know. It usually seems like when you've kind of hit, you know, some kind of a just a lid. When surrender is the response, and you walk through whatever that season, however long it goes, there is something that he ends up doing that you would have not even been able to imagine something could happen. Yeah. The the challenge is you can't get to see it though. You have to take the step into the water, you got to get out of that boat first. You're not guaranteed to walk on it yet. You just got to keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. And so when I think of when what that's what sparked in me when you were talking about gratitude, because I'm thankful for family. I really am. I'm great. I told Summer, I'm grateful. Not everybody has healthy kids, and they still are finding gratefulness because God is in all this. But I am also grateful that we have four boys. Yeah. I'm grateful that in this season they're healthy.

Rhett: 40:13

Yeah.

Justin: 40:14

I'm grateful for the relationship I have with Summer.

Rhett: 40:18

Yeah.

Justin: 40:19

I'm grateful for the stuff that would never air the conversations that we get to have.

Rhett: 40:24

Yeah.

Justin: 40:25

You know, where you can just really vulnerably open up and say, here's kind of where I'm at right now. But also knowing that you're with a companion who we look and say, Yeah, God is up to something. And you have this resolve of just knowing uh that everything's good. Yeah. It's just not my feelings who used to. It's fun when you can have the feelings. Yeah. But sometimes they can still be misleading and you operate from a sense of I've got to let my feelings kind of be part of my combo.

Rhett: 40:59

Yeah, when you were not to interrupt you, because what you're unpacking is is very powerful. But gratitude is not a feeling. Right. And oftentimes in our Western culture, with what we've seen in movies, is looked at as a response to feel it's a feeling, it's an emotion, it's this. And and I get that it is an emotion in in a sense, but it doesn't mean it has to be a happy, happy, joy, joy all the time. I'm grateful. Right. I mean, you know, even when I may not express it outwardly in how whatever we think is gratitude, yeah, you can be you can be thankful. That's right. You know what? I'm not saying you are, but you could literally be going through hell and still be thankful. That's right. To which some people would think, how in the world can you be thankful when you just got whatever bad news you got? Yeah. It's like, because if anything, I I've tried to bring things into a perspective to realize that my gratitude has nothing to do with my circumstances, or my gratitude has nothing to do with my feeling or my emotion or even feeling grateful. It's the fact that I'm just I I am grateful. It's who I am. Yeah so my emotions are things outwardly that I can't control, don't control what's happening inwardly in me. And so my gratitude comes from a rooted place anchored in Christ of who he is and what he's done for me. Yeah. And whether God does another thing for me that I think should line up to whatever Western culture says is blessing, yeah. He's done enough for me through Christ. Yeah. His death, burial, resurrection. So when I look through the layers, through the lens, yeah, for me, gratitude isn't an it's not this feeling. It's a it's a choice that I've made based off the truth that's been revealed to me through God's word. Yeah. And that's where that gratefulness resides in my heart. So when I hear you speaking and when you're starting to say like feeling and emotional, like that's what I hear is that this is not an emotion per se. It's just a it's the truth that resonates within your spirit.

Justin: 43:09

Yeah, yeah. You're surrendered. You're surrendered, and you know that it's it was never, it's never been about me, even when I thought it was. Hey, friends, Red here.

Rhett: 43:19

Just want to take a moment to speak to those who may be joining us for the first time. We want to say welcome, friends. However, you found us, we are so glad that you did, and we believe it wasn't by accident. We're so glad that you joined us in on this conversation today. In fact, if you haven't already done so, could we encourage you to follow us on social media? You can find us on Facebook or Instagram at ArmchairAuthentic or over on X at ArmchairOff Pod. That's Armchairoff A-U-T-H P-O-D. All right. Thanks for taking the time to do that. Now let's get back to our conversation.

Justin: 43:58

It's always been about Christ. He does not fail. Even in whatever our life circumstance, he's sovereign and everything is according to his plan. Even the stuff that wasn't from him, but he allowed everything. Yeah. And he doesn't look at org charts, he doesn't do all this stuff. He looks at you and you exist wherever you are in life. I look at, you know, at this time we're on Thanksgiving week, but we're winding down our year. Things are winding down right now. We're winding down the podcast. There's a lot of pouring out. And, you know, just when we and you get to have our conversations before we even take it to the mic. I mean, I'm so grateful to be where I'm at in life at the age that I'm at, and to still be able to say, like, there God is stirring and doing something.

Rhett: 44:49

Yeah.

Justin: 44:50

And I don't feel any of it necessarily, but I've just seen his faithfulness. And you were saying something a while ago. It even triggered the song that I've heard from a long time ago from Elevation Worship, where it, you know, do it again. He'll do it again. Like I've seen you move. I've seen you move. He'll move the mountains, and I believe you'll do it again. Like it's there's just that trust of I he can move mountains. Yeah. Yeah. But then there's also that side of, but even if he doesn't, I'm still, I'm still gonna be on my knees worshiping you. Yeah. Like that's yeah. Like so, so to me, it's kind of living in that a little bit and just to be purely surrendered. It's just that sense of completely trying to allow, because it's it can be painful, it can feel purposeless at certain times, but to allow yourself to to lock into that pouring out. Because when you pour out, when you empty yourself, it awakens some it it's like if you fast, you're gonna awaken some negative emotions. They're gonna say, Why are you not feeding me food? Yeah, why are you not giving me this?

Rhett: 46:02

I want the sugar. Give me the sugar. Where's mad at the sugar?

Justin: 46:06

So a pouring out is a beautiful thing, but it also has a cost that it comes with. Yes. And so instead of trying to medicate with whatever you name it, anything you can medicate with, yeah, not medicine, you could. I'm even just talking about life, TV, endless whatever food, jelly bellies. Yeah, instead of medicating, just being able to invite the Lord in to whatever he's doing in this moment that feels numb, or you don't really see past when people are like, Man, what do you see over the next three to five years? Great question. And sometimes I can jump into that. Right now, it's a I could go there with you, but I'm in the moment right now. I I don't even want to go there right now. I just want to be poured out.

Rhett: 46:53

Yeah.

Justin: 46:53

And then in that state of emptiness, Holy Spirit, refill me and allow to see if it lines up with I think I see. Yeah. And if the Holy Spirit, if that was a trace of the Holy Spirit, what he's revealed to you as he fills you more and more, it'll just be more clear, clarifying. Or it will have been emptied out when you completely empty yourself out and not go back in. And so just that state, there is a, it's a very serene feel, but at the same time, just a state of gratefulness. Yeah. Going in, just to be able to walk into the black stone grill. Yeah. To be able to go outside and just like I've done with a grill for years, but with a blackstone griddle, yeah, to just be able to sit out there and just appreciate making the mill, having my friends over, sitting at a table and just having the conversations that have been the conversations that have highly impacted the past 32 years, even more than that, the past accelerated the past 17 to 18 years. And there is a sense that something is awakening. Yeah. But you've got to do your part to surrender, to not try to take a feeling of insignificance or weakness or the things that can haunt us where we try to take back control of it.

Rhett: 48:22

Yeah.

Justin: 48:23

Really just want to rest in the gratefulness, the gratitude of this season, and at the same time allow ourselves to be completely poured out for a refilling of what God wants to do.

Rhett: 48:35

It's interesting you mentioned somebody asking you, where do you see yourself in the next three to five years? Because I literally had that question asked to me the other day from a leader. And it's the first time in my life that I I gave the most honest. Um I was just, you know, I think I told you this before. I was really proud of myself for the way I answered it because it really showed how far I've come in the journey that I've been on. You know, a few years back, I would have gone, oh, in the next three to five years, I see it's doing this, dah, bop, bop, bop, bop, bad, bop, bop, bop. Right. You know, and and I I I paused for a moment and I said, you know, that's a it's a great question. I would have answered that differently three to five years ago. I said, but I'm in the first time of my life where I'm not so much worried about the next three to five years. Now we're gonna plan for the future because there's wisdom for that for sure. But if I'm being truly honest, I said, I've lived most of my life looking back at the past and looking toward the future, and I've missed the moments that are now, which I have as today, this breath, this conversation, you and me here in reality in the time of recording this. And I said, So I'm not really interested, so much interested in what's happening next, I'm more interested in what's happening now. And while I understand that conversation, the question you're asking is for conversation to see what kind of vision I have for my life, right? You know, that's the qualifier, right? Yeah, you know, I I literally was like, you know, in the next three to five years, here's where I hope to be passionately pursuing an authentic relationship with God through his word through the local church. Um learning to love myself the way that God loves me, you know, um, so that I can love my neighbor because I can't love people the way that God loves me if I don't love me the way that God loves me. I can't treat people well. So honestly, loving God, loving myself, not in a pride or arrogant me, myself, and I, but more of a healthy spirit, soul, body to where I can love other people well, um, mainly my family first, my wife. So, because at the end of the day, the greatest success isn't whatever I think I'm gonna accomplish in three to five years. I really just want to be living in this moment now, knowing that my wife loves me because I've laid my life down like Christ laid his life down for the church. That's how I serve her.

Justin: 51:10

Ephesians five.

Rhett: 51:11

Yeah, I love my son and he loves me. And man, if the if if those if that's all that I get right, man, I've I've three to five years I'm gonna take care of itself, you know. If I keep things in that order, yeah, loving God, you know, learning to love myself the way that God loves me so that I can love others first, my family, because I'm married and I have a you know, my wife at first, and then my son, and then my friends. And then the thing, and and if I find myself just living in this moment and being fully present in this moment, well, you know what? Tomorrow's gonna take care of itself. Yeah. Because I only have today is just give me this day my daily bread. I want to just live off the manna, if you will. Yeah, the fresh bread from heaven for today, yeah, and not be so focused on it. Now I respectfully understand what you're saying when you ask me that question. And so my hope is that three to five years I'm still doing that. Yeah. Because if I'm doing that, I like I'm winning at life. Yeah, I'm successful. And so that's where my gratitude resonates right now. I'm am I grateful for what's happened in the past? Sure. But I'm more grateful for what's happening today because I have today.

Justin: 52:23

Yeah.

Rhett: 52:24

I'm not so much grateful for the future because I'm not promised it.

Justin: 52:27

Yeah.

Rhett: 52:27

That's why I'm always like, well, Lord willing, I'll get to do this. Like if he tarries, if he, you know, allows me the chance to live that long.

Justin: 52:33

Yeah.

Rhett: 52:34

But honestly, if I love my wife well, the way that Christ loves the church, I love my son, well, I'll still be making a difference three, five, fifteen, twenty years from now. Maybe not physically, if I go to be with Jesus, but I'll still live on through them for the way that I've loved them, the way that God loves me. Yeah. And I'll still be making a difference through their lives in the multiplication that happens through them.

Justin: 52:57

Yeah. In that, in that process you're going through. It's so going back to pouring out. You're pouring your life out right now. Yeah. It's a new way to live. And it's it, yeah. And the word is surrender. Yeah. There you go. Because in essence, what you're doing is you're surrendering. Yeah. And usually you surrender because you're doing something and it might be good. It just needs it needs a reevaluation to make sure it hasn't picked up any chaff along the way. Yep. You know, an example, if you were going to launch something like right now, I think about, you know, when you moved to Birmingham, if you would have jumped right in to start something else, it would have probably been awesome, but there's still the chaff that's being burned away from previous experience as well. But right now, getting to sit empty, there's been a refueling and a refilling that's happened. And so there's something beautiful about being able to surrender things because the stuff that's from God, He'll refill that back up. Oh, 100%. It's just He burns away. Yeah. And I think about Um, I actually had this verse pulled up, not really knowing if I would read it, but it it went perfect what we were just saying. Yeah, read it. As we begin to really wrap up this episode, is when you surrender, you're and you have the palms up, you're surrendering saying, Lord, I am yours. So whatever you want to do, I'm still I'm I am available for you. Yeah. But I'm I don't want to be available to serve my own ego, even when I don't realize that ego is a part of it.

Rhett: 54:28

Right.

Justin: 54:29

I don't want to prove myself if I'm doing it to prove I need to do this or that I still got it. I want to prove something only if it's you asking me to go to do something. And I want to prove myself worthy. Yeah. Which you've already made me worthy through the cross of Christ. And I try to live by your precepts, Lord. I want to live a life that's pleasing to you. And so I look at this book of Joshua. And what makes this verse that I'm going to read so special is I can take you back to June of 1993. I'm in a Christian bookstore, not even surrendered to the Lord at this time. I'm 15 years old. June of 93, I'm at a store called Joshua's Christian bookstore.

Rhett: 55:12

I wonder right where that is.

Justin: 55:13

In Roebuck. Roebuck, Alabama.

Rhett: 55:16

Right beside the Milos, wasn't it?

Justin: 55:18

It was, yeah.

Rhett: 55:18

Yeah. In Roebuck.

Justin: 55:19

And I was about to go on the beach trip that would end up being the space I surrendered my life to Christ in July. And my Aunt Debbie took me, who I've just always loved my Aunt Debbie. She was a missionary for many years in Bogota, Columbia, lived there back in the States now, bilingual. My mom's sister. And I just always, she was just always something, there was a light on her. And I didn't know what it was as a kid, but it was, it was just, it was Jesus. And she's taken me to Joshua bookstore and she buys me a Bible. And I remember at that time there was a chance you were going on the beach trip. I know you ended up not going on the trip, but and I remember mentioning you, and she said, Well, let's get rep one too.

Rhett: 56:04

Oh, that's sweet.

Justin: 56:05

And do you remember that? It was the Blue Adventure Bible. Oh, yeah. I still, yeah. And she on both of ours, she sat in the corner of Joshua's bookstore and she was highlighting some scriptures she wanted to make sure. And then she wrote this um little inscription on my old Bible. So whenever I read this in Joshua 1 7, 1 8, you know, area 1. I think of my Aunt Debbie highlighting that for me. Because I would surrender my life to Christ about a month later, and I had no clue the adventure that was in front of us. But it's when Joshua, the Israelites, have been wandering the desert for the wilderness for 40 years. And Moses doesn't end up going to the promised land.

Rhett: 56:52

Yeah.

Justin: 56:52

That's a whole theological talk there because it seems bad that man, he didn't get to go, which there's some things to be said for that, but he also was such a friend of God. Moses saw it, but he lived the ultimate. It wasn't going to get better in the promised land for considering for Moses. I'm opening up a whole other can now. He was a friend of God. Yeah. And we can feel sorry for him that he didn't actually make it over there, but that's a whole other subject. He had an amazing time like with God. He saw God. Face to face. Yeah, like nobody. So Moses was doing just fine, everybody. But it was a charge that was putting someone else in. So Joshua's going to take over. And he's kind of getting his marching orders because there's a reason when you're told this, and how scripture lives on through generation through generation. It's timeless. We live in this. This is something we can take and take these same words for us. And it's it says, be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you. Do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. And he's obviously being told about the law that they had such a time trying to keep in the wilderness. And the Lord knew he wants to create, he wants a people who are set apart. And so Josiah or Joshua is going to be in really the authority who's making sure that these people are set up to obey these laws and these precepts. And this is what my Aunt Debbie had highlighted. It says, Keep this book of the law always on your lips, meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Again, in verse 9, have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. And so when I hear that verse, I've seen 32 years of a reason why that verse is needed. It's taken a lot of courage.

Rhett: 59:13

Yeah.

Justin: 59:15

It's taken a lot of strength. Like there's a reason he was given that. And that's an encouragement for us too, as we take on these seasons, even that we've talked about now. Things might be numb right now. And at this time of recording November 2025. Other seasons have kind of come to an end, and we're in this moment of there's a transition happening. I don't mean role. I don't mean that. I mean, sure, it could be. You never know. You're not as much in control as you think you are. God is. But I just mean in the spirit, there's a transitioning happening. You can feel shifting. But it's the Courage is the boldness that we have to take with us and not in ourself, it's the confidence that comes from Christ where we can just be still and know that He is God. We can listen for His whispers in our life, and we can sit back with a heart of gratitude to know no matter what I do, I choose you. I choose joy in the sense that your joy is my strength. And right now I need some of your joy. I need the joy of the Lord to be my strength. And I want to walk in your courage, Lord. I want to walk poured out. I want to walk surrendered in your presence. Not what I can get, but whatever your plans are. I'll I'm just my heart of gratitude. I'm just thankful that you're allowing me to continue to be a part of this.

Rhett: 1:00:58

I love that you shared that verse. The root and the foundation of the strength, of the courage, and of the gratitude that we carry as followers of Christ is rooted in that last line. Which I paraphrase is because wherever we go, wherever we are, the Lord is with us.

Justin: 1:01:21

Amen.

Rhett: 1:01:23

That is the reason of our gratitude. That is the foundation of our strength. That is the foundation of our courage. And that is the foundation of our life. When we look back, capturing this time capsule of armchair authentic and our friendship and all that God has done, all that God is doing, and all that God will continue to do according to his word and his will. It's for that last line. Wherever we are, wherever we go, the Lord is with us. Hey friends, thank you so much for joining us on today's conversation. We're really looking forward to next week's. But until then, we hope you have a great week. Stay safe. We wish God's blessing on all of you. We look forward to seeing you right here next Monday on Armchair Authentic.