Burning Butterflies

Chapter 7, Episode 19 The series finale! 

Chapter 7, Episode 18 We've brought you full circle in the podcast to where we began, but there's one last story we need to tell. Throughout this podcast we have hinted at the fact that Melissa is divorced from Froggy, but we've never told the story of the divorce. And in true Burning Butterflies fashion, it's a doozy! 

Chapter 7, Episode 17 Well, we have come full circle! We're bringing you right back to where we started this story - with Melissa and Amanda sitting in a hotel room, taking an online quiz, looking at each other in stunned disbelief and the phrase "Holy shit, we were in a cult!" being uttered!

Our ladies have all left the church and are all on their healing and deconstruction journeys. But an accident from the past comes back to haunt Tom and leads to a lawsuit, affidavits and depositions. But this time, a few of the people being asked the hard questions are no longer drinking the koolaid!  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 15 What happens when Brandi decides to leave the church? Well in true Come As You Are Fashion, it involves a ton of gaslighting and narrative shifting! How did we go from Brandi is amazing and we're throwing her a going away party and giving her an envelope full of cash to she's awful and we are not to talk about her ever again to Brandi receiving a phone call from the person who took her place at Come As You Are? Buckle up, because boy oh boy does this episode have some twists and turns! Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 14 TW: abuse, DV, threatening murder For nine years, Melissa has tried her very best to be the wife that God is calling her to be; even through Froggy's abuse, anger and addiction. So what was the straw that broke this camel's back and finally rid Melissa from his reign of terror?  This episode contains descriptions of domestic violence. If that is too much for you, please skip this episode and just know Froggy finally left Melissa's house.  You will also hear a cameo from Melissa's dogs in the background. If you follow us on Patreon, you know that every time Melissa talks about Froggy, her dogs have big opinions. Today is not any different.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 13 Melissa is one of the main leaders of women's retreat, giving the inspiration for the theme for the year. But little did she know that not only would this all go down the drain, but this would be her last experience with women's retreat ever.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 12 Amanda is pushed over the edge and finally comes to the realization that Tom was lying about Barry the entire time. Meanwhile, Melissa finds the confidence within herself to push back against Froggy's controlling nature.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

With Amanda out of the office and Melissa distancing herself from the church in preparation to leave Froggy, Miss America is getting closer and closer to Charlotte. In this episode, Melissa and Amanda discuss the visits they made to Miss America's house - Amanda thinking she wanted to discuss church marketing and Melissa being ordered to go by Charlotte.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 10 Amanda finally has had enough and quits her job (for real this time) and it occurs to her that Tom has had a plan to put Miss America in her job position all along. But still, Amanda is devoted to this church family and is wanting to stay even though she is stepping down from ministry and her job in the office. But when her son has a medical emergency, the support and love that she was expecting from her church family isn't there. How does Amanda reconcile the betrayal? 

Chapter 7, Episode 9 Under women's ministry, the ladies took a bold turn during Covid and started Facebook lives that turned into a Sally Jessy Raphael fever dream. Ladies were loving it and Charlotte signed off on it. So when Tom randomly shows up one recording day, the gals think he will love it. But oh how wrong they were!  In this episode, the ladies discuss how Tom passive aggressively attempted to shut them down, but the magic words of Come As You Are ("God Told Me") allowed them to leave the umbrella of authority of Tom and make the podcast their own.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 8 Amanda has been struggling with her place at the church for a while, so she finally makes the decision that if she can't see the vision for Come As You Are that God has given Tom, then she needs to step down from her position in the church. As she puts things in place to step away from ministry, she has her second meeting with Barry. And let's just say, things don't go very well.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 7 Charlette is on a mission to make Miss America likeable to the masses right in the middle of Amanda's crusade to make Come As You Are Great Again! These two fronts converge with the push for Miss America to lead a women's ministry event.  For years, the qualifications of what is expected of leaders at Come As You Are have been pushed down the body's throats. Masterlife, Next Steps, serving to the death. The problem? Miss America hasn't done any of those things and has no idea what actually does on in the church. So, what is she wanting to lead and will the ladies just roll over and accept her leadership? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 6 Thursday Night Service has been nothing but worship and small groups for a few weeks now and Melissa and Froggy are leading a study. Their plan? Read through the Bible as married couples. A plan that is simple in premise, but difficult in execution. Froggy's grandparents continually try to have deep discussions on Biblical marriage (which is not what the study is about). And Froggy who is supposed to be the leader of the group is relying on Melissa to do all the work and make him look smart and competent. So what happens when Melissa has enough and just decides one night to not prepare anything for Froggy to say?  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 5 The men have completed the eldership training and are ready to be presented to the body as elders. But there's one glaring issue. There is a clear difference between the men that serve the body that will become elders and those that will become elders that don't serve the body. Also, Tom wasn't planning on seeking the input of the entire church family. In a prayer meeting, Amanda speaks up to bring up red flags in a couple of the men, one of them being Barry. Afterwards, Amanda tries to sit down with Barry to gain clarification in hopes that he will answer her questions and squelch her concerns. But just like everything at Come As You Are, this doesn't go the way she thought it would.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 4 With the pandemic, the ladies can't travel up the mountain for retreat in 2020. With many women having pre-paid, Come As You Are needs to come up with something quick before ladies start asking for refunds. The solution? A conference! This will be Melissa's women's ministry debut, leading along side Brandi and Amanda will not be involved at all. Well, at least that was the plan. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 3 Join Melissa and Amanda as they discuss Melissa's marriage after Froggy returned from helping his brother during COVID. The time away gives Melissa clarity and she begins to plot her escape. However, she still has to "do church."  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 2 Tom thought forming an eldership would solve his leadership problems—but instead, it created new ones. These men are about to complete their eldership training and will become official leaders in the church. The problem? Ministries already have leaders. People who’ve been doing the work faithfully for years are now being told they have to answer to someone else. Enter Tom’s brilliant solution: the Color Levels. A brand-new hierarchy that assigns everyone their place in the pecking order. What could possibly go wrong with reducing years of service, sacrifice, and calling down to a color chart? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 7, Episode 1 In the debut episode of our final chapter, the ladies pick up where they left off in chapter 6. Amanda was yelled at and called inept for not sending Tom's mother in law a text message. Amanda intends to confront Tom, pointing out that he has lost his way and Come As You Are isn't living up to it's purposes. But Tom takes Amanda's words as "affirmation" that he has heard from the Lord.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

This is it! The final chapter! In this last "minisode," Melissa and Amanda talk about how they have changed over the course of the podcast and what they are most looking forward to in this final chapter.  The first episode of Chapter 7 will drop on Thursday, August 21st at 6:30pm

Chapter 6, Episode 13 - Chapter Finale As tensions build in the church against Barry, people start asking questions. Barry and Miss America seem to have changed their narrative and people are taking notice. At the same time, Amanda is starting to question if Tom is someone worth following.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 12 Come As You Are finally gets cleared from the county to reopen from the Covid shutdown and who does Tom choose to make huge decisions? Barry! The man who has not even been at the church for a year, the man who hasn't taken any of the onboarding classes, the man who keeps changing his past. And in the midst of it all, Amanda finds the backbone to finally stand up to Tom and call out his questionable decisions.  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 11 Throughout the pandemic, Froggy travels out of state to work for his brother. This time apart is not only good for Froggy (who is finding fulfillment in his work) but also for Melissa (who is getting her groove back without the abusive cloud of Froggy looming over her).  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 10 They're making Barry a pastor, so how does his debut go? And what is that smell coming from the church office? But there's no time to worry about any of that, we have a VBS to put on in the middle of a pandemic! Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 9 Some weeks blur together. This one? Felt like a lifetime. In this episode, the ladies double-check the receipts, because there’s no way all of this chaos unfolded in just seven days… right? Wrong. In the middle of a global pandemic, they somehow manage to plan an online VBS, lay the groundwork for what would eventually become the women's ministry podcast, and spiral over the bombshell announcement that Barry—yes, Barry—is going to be the next pastor. And just when Amanda thinks it can’t get more surreal, Tom screams at her in the middle of a sermon. From emotional breakdowns to spiritual gaslighting, this week had it all. No wonder it felt like a year. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 8 Amanda walks into the church office ready to quit. She’s exhausted, disillusioned, and done. But before she can even get to Tom, she’s intercepted by Charlette who begs her not to leave. To Charlette, it’s simple: Amanda’s just burned out. The solution? A vacation. But this is 2020. The world is shut down. Where is Amanda supposed to go? And more importantly—what is she supposed to do with all the emotions, doubts, and pressure she’s been burying for years? But she finds somewhere to go and while she's supposed to be relaxing and recharging, Amanda gets a phone call from Brandi that changes everything. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 7 The mandates loosen very slightly and suddenly, gathering in groups of 10 or fewer becomes the new spiritual loophole. Masks on, six feet apart, and… lights, camera, live stream! In this episode, the ladies recount the surreal phase of "10 people or Less." Tom is elated—he finally has a live audience again, no matter how small. Amanda? She’s just relieved she no longer has to sneak into the building in the dead of night to record with Tom. But as the church flirts with the blurry line between compliance and defiance, not everyone is impressed. One Sunday, during a live stream, that tension explodes when someone enters the church to confront Tom. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 6 In this episode, the ladies take us back to the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when fear and uncertainty were real—but inside the church, they were dismissed as weakness or lack of faith. Tom publicly reassured the congregation that they would “honor the authorities” because it was biblical, presenting himself as obedient and humble. But behind closed doors, it was a different story: mocking those who were afraid, calling mandates persecution, and brushing off the virus as “just the flu.” And when Tom's supernatural connection to God was put to the test and he is forced to preach to a camera instead of a crowd, he fell flat, revealing how much of his “anointing” relied on control over people. This is the episode where the cracks start to show—and where faith, fear, and performance collide. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 5 While the men were buzzing about the formation of an eldership, the women were… well, doing everything else. In this episode, the ladies dig into what they were actually up to while the boys were playing church politics. Plus: the shady origins of the phrase “you girls,” how it was used to diminish and what is the world is a red tent and why was it the basis for a ladies study? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 4 Everyone who was asking problematic questions has left, but now how can Tom keep those pesky doubts from rising up again? We can have elders! But we're not like a normal church here at Come As You Are! No! We don't do things just because that is how other churches do things. We will have elders on our own terms (aka Tom's Terms!) Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 3 As Amanda reels from the accusation that she is the reason people are leaving the church, the pressure mounts. She’s angry, confused, and desperate for clarity—but the one thing she’s not allowed to do is sit down and talk to anyone about it. In this episode, we unpack what was the truth behind the departures and how far Tom will go to keep Amanda invested when the foundation starts to crack? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 2 Everyone take a sign of relief that the banquet went smoothly. Maybe, just maybe all of this staging a coup stuff will blow over. Or maybe not.  What happens when Tom is called out before Sunday service? What was really said behind closed doors and why is it Brandi and Amanda's fault? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 6, Episode 1 In this Chapter 6 premiere, the ladies discuss the aftermath of Tom finding out that there are people attempting to stage a coup. The tensions build as the body goes into the annual banquet of 2020 and what happens when the whole group of disgruntled members show up together?  Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Welcome to Chapter 6! When we left off, the girls had just dropped a huge bomb. What is the fall out from that? How does Tom move forward? And if you thought our time was crazy at Come As You Are up until this point, wait until a pandemic hits!  We can't wait to take you on this wild ride as we begin to discover "There's No Cure For This."

Chapter 5 Finale As 2019 draws to a close, the cracks at Come As You Are are no longer just surface-level—they’re splitting wide open. People are starting to ask real questions about Tom: his leadership, his choices, and most of all, the church’s finances. Whispers of a rebellion start circulating. Some of the recently burned are done staying silent—and they’re ready to push back. Then, on New Year’s Eve, under the cover of darkness, Brandi and Amanda ask for a private meeting with Tom and Charlotte. What’s shared behind those closed doors will shake the foundation of everything. And after this night… nothing will ever be the same. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 14 As the holiday season rolls in, the Griswolds step up to host a community Thanksgiving dinner—only to hit a wall when they find out their ministry fund is mysteriously empty. The questions start flying: where’s the money? Meanwhile, Tom is on a mission. Still reeling from the worship team fallout, he’s determined to prove he’s still got it by pulling off the greatest Christmas Eve service ever. It’s a season of confusion, control, and carefully crafted illusions. Because at Come As You Are, even the holidays come with strings attached. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 13 Fall of 2019 brings two unforgettable meetings that cause a whole lot of damage. First up: the worship team implodes after a blow-up at practice, and Tom calls a meeting to “resolve” things. But when emotions run high and accountability is mentioned, Tom storms out—leaving Ole Reliable and Amanda to clean up the mess and play peacemaker in a room full of broken trust. Then, in an attempt to win back the young families post–Young Gun, Tom hosts a “vision casting” session for a new family pastor. But what starts as a family style brainstorming quickly spirals into a power trip as Tom derails the meeting and declares himself the all-powerful pastor. You won't want to miss this one! Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 12 Charlotte starts dropping hints that she’s ready to maybe let go of the reins of women’s ministry. But like everything else at Come As You Are, it’s not that simple. Instead of a healthy handoff, Charlotte uses the opportunity to manipulate, test loyalties, and maintain control—just from behind the curtain. The illusion of empowerment becomes a new form of gatekeeping. Meanwhile, something feels off with Barry and Miss America’s story. Details don’t quite line up, and things they once said are slowly being rewritten. Pay attention—because the cracks are starting to show, and the truth is becoming harder to pin down. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 11 Fresh off the Georgia trip, Tom is fired up about effective communication. For once, it seems like he’s actually all in—ready to implement everything he’s learned and get the church on board with his newfound passion. But how does he plan to make it happen? Simple. He buys yet another program from Rick Warren. Because nothing says vision like a pre-packaged church growth strategy. Will this one finally be the thing that transforms Come As You Are? Or is it just another expensive distraction in Tom’s never-ending cycle of big ideas and zero follow-through? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 10 Tom comes back from Georgia fired up, ready to revolutionize church communication. Enter Grow Gatherings—meetings meant to bring people together, spark engagement, and finally give the congregation a voice. For a brief moment, it seems like something real is happening. People are excited. Ideas are flowing. But then, reality sets in. Tom and Charlotte quickly realize that letting people have a voice also means hearing them—and that’s a problem. The solution? Vetting. Filtering. Controlling. Because at Come As You Are, not all voices are created equal. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 9 Amanda finds a church communications conference in Atlanta that she’s eager to attend, but what starts as simply asking for permission quickly spirals into a full-blown staff trip—led and planned by Tom, of course. Suddenly, it’s no longer about learning or growth; it’s about control. As with most things at Come As You Are, there's more that meets the eye. Who actually paid for this trip? What did they really learn? What did Tom want implemented? And back home, Froggy is up to something that’s pulling Tom’s attention away from the conference. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 8 The theme for VBS 2019 is Run Your Race, but as usual, Tom has his own agenda. Determined to put the men of the church in their place and prove they need to step up, he appoints himself as the lead. But in true Tom fashion, that really just means one thing—Brandi and Amanda will do all the work, while he takes all the credit. Who’s really running this race? And at what cost? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 7 A new family walks through the church doors, and Tom smells money. They need to be love-bombed and pulled in immediately, and what better way than to hand them over to Brandi and Amanda? Fresh off being allowed to be friends again, the two are tasked with planning a funeral at Come As You Are—a funeral that quickly turns into a complete disaster. Amanda and Brandi are manipulated, overworked, and taken advantage of, but in the chaos, something important happens. This new family starts sharing bits of their past—who they were before Come As You Are. But here’s the catch: their story is going to change. Pay close attention to what Amanda is told now, because as time goes on, their narrative will shift, and the truth will become harder to find. This isn’t just a funeral—it’s the start of something much bigger. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 6 Pastor Young Gun is out, but the fallout is far from over. With the church divided, Tom is desperate to reassert his authority. He played his hand, forcing people to choose sides, and now it’s time to bring the Team Young Gun stragglers back into the fold. But how does he do it? And more importantly—does it work? Meanwhile, amidst the tension and manipulation, something unexpected happens. Brandi and Amanda are allowed to be friends again. What changed? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 5 Tom has never been one for deep self-reflection or lingering in raw emotion, but as a pastor, he knows he has to maintain the illusion of spiritual depth and care. With Good Friday 2019 approaching, he faces a dilemma—how to keep his mask on without letting the service become too introspective or heavy. His solution? Send Amanda and Froggy into the planning meetings to do the dirty work for him. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 4 Coming off the success of the Christmas play, Melissa is determined to make the church’s Valentine’s event unforgettable with a dinner theater experience. The Griswolds take charge of the meal, while Melissa reimagines The Glass Menagerie with her own twist. But the real question of the night—can Froggy pull off his sermon-style message and send couples home feeling encouraged in the Lord? Meanwhile, Amanda is sidelined with pneumonia as the church gears up for the third annual Daddy-Daughter Dance. She leaves the event in others’ hands, but as tensions rise and women start walking out, she’s called in at the last minute. Will the night end in sweet memories or complete disaster? Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 3 In this episode of Burning Butterflies, Amanda recalls the tense and defining moment when she decided to challenge Charlette’s rigid approach to women's ministry at Come As You Are. For years, the women's events at the church were steeped in tradition—every gathering required a keepsake, a craft, and, of course, worship. It had become an adult version of VBS, and Amanda, along with Brandi, was growing increasingly frustrated with the formulaic approach. After attending a series of fresh, innovative conferences, the duo felt inspired to put on an event of their own—a simple, meaningful gathering for women, without all the unnecessary fluff. But Charlette wasn’t one to take kindly to being proven wrong. In this episode, we dive into how Charlette responded to Amanda’s bold move, whether the women in the church were willing to show up for something new, was Brandi allowed to participate and what did Froggy have to do with a women's conference. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5, Episode 2 Amanda has always wanted to serve, to be useful, to prove her devotion to the church and to Tom. But in this episode, we unravel how Tom expertly manipulates her, turning her into a pawn in his mind games—this time, with Beth as his target. As tensions rise, Amanda is unknowingly used to push Beth over the edge, leading to her final breaking point and ultimate decision to leave the church for good. And what is Amanda’s reward for her blind loyalty? A position in the sound booth—a ministry at last, after her humiliating "time out" punishment. But there’s just one problem: Amanda has no knowledge, no experience, and absolutely no business being there. Yet, in Tom’s world, qualifications don’t matter—only obedience does.

Chapter 5, Episode 1 The premiere of Chapter 5 kicks off with a dramatic turning point as the subtle division within the church finally erupts into the open. For months, tensions have been brewing beneath the surface, with quiet alliances forming amongst the church body. Even Tom has acknowledged the split, referring to You Gun as "their pastor"—a comment that only fuels the divide. Amanda recounts the shocking moment she walks into the church for a special service, only to be told she must choose a side. It has been decided to take the division to a vote, forcing the congregation to publicly declare their loyalties. Burning Butterflies is a listener supported podcast. Please check out our Patreon to learn more about how you too can support what we are doing! Please help us share our story with others! Follow us on FB, Insta or TikTok. Subscribe so you won't miss new episodes and don't forget to leave us a rating!

Chapter 5 Mini-Sode "It All Hits the Fan"