The Lantern and the Flashlight

From the very beginning, our marriage has included room to breathe. Encouragement to take alone time. Support to go home. A trust that distance doesn’t mean disconnection.This episode is a walk back through the early days. The role music played in bringing us to Tennessee, the long drives, the unexpected detours, and the seasons of uncertainty that followed. We reflect on the years that reshaped everything, and how the very thing that brought us here is even finding its way back again.This is our road map. So much we couldn't see ahead, but somehow kept walking together.

Part Two continues our conversation about drifting, feeling unseen, emotional burdens, and reconnecting through small, spirit-led moments. Drifting isn’t the death — God restores what feels apart.

When marriage drifts, it rarely happens through drama — it happens quietly. In this (part one) episode, we talk about the subtle seasons where you aren’t fighting, but you’re not really connecting either. We explore how small frustrations reveal deeper needs, how resentment begins before anger, and how feeling unseen can happen on both sides at the same time. Through Scripture and personal reflection, we discuss learning each other, carrying each other’s burdens, and noticing God in the everyday moments. If you’re feeling disconnected, this conversation reminds you that small things can become pathways back to each other — and God works in the quiet.

We’re learning to slow down and listen, to abide with the Holy Spirit, to trade striving for surrender, and to see the fruit that grows when we walk in obedience.It's honest conversation with plenty of laughter and a few rabbit trails along the way, but somehow, every one of them leads back to Jesus.

After several weeks away, we’re back with a new episode. What began as a simple catch-up turned into honest conversations about the next steps in our faith—growing in prayer, seeking a church home, and navigating relationship changes when priorities slip out of place. With a some space for current events.It’s not just chatter; it’s daily bread for the soul (Matthew 6:11). Along the way, we follow a few rabbit trails too—because we don't know how not to.

We’re back after a few weeks off, thanks to RAI (spoiler: it hit harder than expected).We talk recovery, real-life side effects, and how our “lantern vs. flashlight” brains handle everyday chaos—me with all the tabs open, him with one tab at a time. Marriage, misfires, and making it work.

This week was one of those blurry ones—where the days feel like molasses but your soul’s sprinting. Walking through thyroid cancer treatment will do that. Everything slows down and speeds up all at once. So, we sat down to record… and somehow ended up talking about roadkill hats, the power of suggestion, pocket preferences, and the staying power of childhood cartoons.It might sound like chaos (and it is), but somewhere in there, we found a thread—about how little pivots can change everything, how “default mode” somehow became “busy,” and how not every shift in life has to come with blame. Sometimes it’s just a moment. A before and after.It’s a whole lot of nothing, and a whole lot of everything, wrapped in laughter, fatigue, faith, and tomato plants.Which honestly? Feels just right for this season.

This week, we talk about low iodine madness, legacy land, and the kind of provision that doesn’t look flashy—but looks a whole lot like faithfulness. We buried our sweet Reesie, made new friends in unlikely places, and sat in the ache and the laughter of a weekend that didn’t go as planned—but landed exactly where it needed to. Being surrounded by all our children and grandchildren, running amuck and filling the place with laughter and life— honestly, that might just be the most beautiful kind of holy. Romans 12:2 reminds us: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” Like Mary, who said yes to God’s plan before she understood it— we keep showing up. We don’t let the hard things steal the joy. We let them sit together, and we trust that God can hold it all. Joy and grief held hands. Comparison lied. And the Word told the truth.

Sometimes faith shows up with fireworks—and sometimes it smells like the backyard. In this episode, we’re talking about the way Jesus meets each of us differently, just like He did with His first disciples in John 1. From quiet invitations to tailor-made miracles, He never gives more than we need—but always gives just enough to follow.Along the way, I share some tender thoughts about saying goodbye to our sweet Reesie, my childhood memories of cleaning the yard (and my dad’s uncanny gift for spotting missed poop), and the surprising peace that can show up in grief. Spoiler: Matthew 5:4 hits different when you’re living it.There’s also some light detouring into bonsai trees, Chia Pets, and the ways men and women care differently—because of course there is.If you've ever needed a gentle reminder that Jesus sees your heart, in your moment—this one's for you.

This week, we talk about thyroid cancer, trusting God with hard news, and finding peace in the waiting.We’re in the more now part of the story—the part after the shock, when things are still unfolding, tender, and real. The road ahead isn’t clear, but faith is holding what we don’t yet understand.Where the news is heavier, the faith is deeper, and God feels closer than ever.Not every chapter comes with clarity, but His Word doesn’t waver.When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." — John 11:4Even this part is being used for something holy. Even this is holy ground.https://twentythreepines.com/blog

New love is easy. Normal love takes work—and a sense of humor when the altitude kicks in.This episode explores what happens when relationships shift from new to normal—when the spark settles and real life rolls in. We talk about learning not to take things personally when your person is quiet, tense, or off their game, and how pulling ego out of the equation can make room for grace.We also wander into strangers who overshare in the produce aisle, spontaneous alien questions in public, and whether you’re the kind of person who draws people in—or gives off mildly extraterrestrial energy.There may have been some stress farts along the way. We regret nothing.

We went on a little working getaway to the lavender farm…but the mic came with us.From birdsong and hummingbirds to dusty benches and bumblebee rescues, we settled into a laid-back chat full of lavender breezes and lighthearted nothings.No big deep dives this time—just a little porch talk about old books, mustache massages (yes, really), and the magic of slowing down.A summer soundscape with zero agenda and a whole lotta grace.

Let’s be honest: some days “good enough” is a clean pair of underwear and remembering what day it is.This episode, we chat about how our personal thresholds for “fine” keep moving, how balance isn’t always graceful, and how the power of suggestion can mess with your head faster than a toddler with a Sharpie. Also, muddy hands made an appearance. As they do.Come hang out while we sort through the chaos—we promise at least one “aha” moment and a couple of “wait, what?”s.

From bratwursts to birthdays, somewhere between the laughs and the lessons, we unpack a recent opportunity that showed up disguised as discomfort - and how accidents have a funny way of teaching us exactly what we needed to learn.

The Lantern & The Flashlight is live — honest conversations, unfiltered faith, and a whole lot of figuring it out as we go.