The Family Disciple Me Podcast // Discipleship Starts With a Conversation
In a world filled with a lot of talk, we want to have meaningful, biblical conversations with those God has entrusted to us. Join Tosha Williams and the Family Disciple Me ministry for Devotion Driven Discipleship conversation starters that will encourage you to "Seek Him Speak Him" in your own life.
Family Disciple Me is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) Christian ministry dedicated to catalyzing Devotion Driven Discipleship in our own lives and homes as well as around the world.
For more information, visit familydiscipleme.org
The Family Disciple Me Podcast // Discipleship Starts With a Conversation
THE PLUGGED IN PRAYER LIFE: Call! | God's Open Line
Have you ever tried calling someone repeatedly only to get voicemail? Or wondered if your number was blocked? Unlike our often-frustrating human communications, God offers an always-open line.
The invention of the telephone in 1876 revolutionized how people connected, eliminating distance as a barrier to conversation. Similarly, prayer eliminates the distance between us and God, offering instant access without wires, Wi-Fi, or physical proximity. Throughout Scripture, God gives us His "phone numbers" – Jeremiah 33:3 says "Call to me and I will answer you," Isaiah 65:24 promises "Before they call, I will answer," and Psalm 91:15 assures that "When he calls to me, I will answer him." These aren't just poetic words but promises from our God who actively invites connection.
This episode explores the third concept in our Plugged In Prayer Life series: after powering up (recognizing God as our source) and plugging in (turning our hearts toward Him), we're now invited to call on Him through prayer. Our theme verse, Jeremiah 29:12, proclaims this promise: "Call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen."
What makes this concept especially powerful for discipleship is how it speaks the language of today's tech-savvy generation. Children who instinctively understand phones and expect instant digital access can easily grasp the concept of calling on God. Every time we reach for our phones can become a reminder to whisper a quick prayer – a thank you, a simple request, or just acknowledging God's presence with "Lord, I'm here" or "Lord, I need you."
Join us in this conversation about maintaining an open line with God, and discover how to use everyday technology as a spiritual prompt for yourself and the next generation. Check out our coordinating conversation guide at familydiscipleme.org to deepen your understanding and application of this transformative truth.
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The Family Disciple Me ministry exists to catalyze devotion driven discipleship in our homes and around the world. We believe that discipleship starts with a conversation, and FDM provides free, easily-accessible, biblical resources to encourage these meaningful conversations along life's way. Sign up through our website to be "the first to know" about upcoming releases and resources (including the FDM App - coming soon!!!) You can also follow Family Disciple Me on social media.
Family Disciple Me is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit ministry, and all donations are tax deductible. More information, blogs, statement of faith and contact info can be found at familydiscipleme.org
Have you ever tried to call someone and gotten voicemail for the 50 millionth time? Have you ever wondered if your number got blocked? Or you're trying to call somebody and had the wrong number? In our world today, communication can sometimes be well frustrating, even with phones in every hand and pockets full of devices. But let me take you back to a time before that was even an option. On February 14, 1876, two men, elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell, both filed patents for the same invention the telephone. There's debate about who actually invented it, and even Congress got involved in 2002 when they credited an Italian immigrant named Antonio Meucci as the first to create the device.
Speaker 1:Whoever truly invented it, one thing is clear the invention of the telephone changed the history of the world. By the early 1900s, telephone lines were stretching across the United States, connecting homes like never before. Just like electricity had powered the nation, just like the electrical outlet had given the common person the ability to access that power, now voices could travel across cities and states. And with each improvement, from rotary dials to cordless phones, to flip phones, to smartphones, with each advancement in technology came one essential function, that is, to call. And that brings us to today's truth in the Plugged In Prayer Life conversations.
Speaker 1:In our first conversation we talked about power up. We recognize that God is our source. He is mighty, he is strong, he is capable, he is able. Nothing's impossible for Him. He is the one to whom we can turn in prayer. And then in our last conversation, we talked about the next point of plug in, where we turn our hearts to Him, where we draw near and we connect to Him. And now with that we come to our next conversation, where we are invited to call, and not with a phone but with prayer. Hi, my name is Tasha Williams and I'm delighted to get to spend a few more minutes with you here as we go through this collection of conversations about prayer.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Family Disciple Me podcast. You're in the right place to be equipped, challenged and blessed in Jesus' name. The mission of the Family Disciple Me ministry is to inspire devotion-driven discipleship, which is something we believe every Christ follower can do. Discipleship starts with a conversation, so today, let this podcast episode encourage you to seek Him, speak Him.
Speaker 1:Let's be honest, one of the kindest things a friend can say is call me anytime. It's personal, it's open, it's reassuring, it's engaging. And that's exactly what God says to us, not just once but over and over and over again in scripture. You could say that God has lots of phone numbers. His phone number 333, says call to me and I will answer you. That's Jeremiah 33, that is. And then well, his phone number 6524 says before they call, I will answer. That's Isaiah 6524. And then there's 915 that says when he calls to me, I will answer him. That's Psalm 91, 15. Zechariah 13 9 says they will call on my name and I will answer them. All these phone numbers, all these verses, well, they're not just poetic, they're not just, well, phone numbers. They reveal the heart of a God who invites us into connection. This connection totally corresponds with our theme verse for today, which is Jeremiah, chapter 29, verse 12, that says call on me and come and pray to me and I will listen.
Speaker 1:Now, before the invention of the telephone, if you wanted to talk to someone you had to walk to their house or perhaps send a letter or some sort of message. That wasn't just inconvenient, it created distance. But when the phone arrived. It brought access Suddenly. People could check in and say I love you or give an update or ask for help. The line was open. Prayer does that as well. We don't need wires or Wi-Fi. We don't need to see God with our eyes, to talk to him with our hearts. We can trust that our God hears us when we pray. We don't get his voicemail, we're not blocked. His line is always open and he's always listening.
Speaker 1:As we consider this particular concept in the Plugged In Prayer Life series, as we meditate on our theme verse today of Jeremiah 29, verse 12, I encourage you to spend some time in the accompanying conversation guide. Spend some time in the seek him, asking God the questions what, why and how. Call on him. Say God, what are you saying to me through this scripture? Call on him and ask him God, why does this scripture matter for my life? And then talk to him about how do you want me to apply this truth to my life? And then, as Christ followers, seek him must always lead to speak him. So how do we teach this truth to the next generation?
Speaker 1:This, to me, is where it gets so good, because, well, phones are everywhere. Kids know how they work. I even watch my grandbabies hold a phone and somehow they know exactly what to do. Kids call, kids text. Kids expect instant access through their phones. That's what makes this such an incredible discipleship opportunity. When we say something like calling God is like making a phone call, we're speaking their language is like making a phone call. We're speaking their language.
Speaker 1:I've told my kids stories about, well, the massive phone that my parents gave my sister and I back in college. It was one of the original cordless phones and it was as big as a suitcase. They gave it to us so that we could have connection with them as we were driving back and forth between our college and our home. But thing is, it was so big that we left it in the back seat. It was so complicated we never used it.
Speaker 1:That's not the way phones are now and that's definitely not the way prayer is. My husband's funny because he grew up in rural Kentucky back when they still had party lines and well, that's kind of a curious thing I never experienced. But he can use that to talk to our kids and the next generation about the fact that we can come to God together in prayer. I don't know what your phone story is, but I'm pretty sure that you have at least a few of them is, but I'm pretty sure that you have at least a few of them For all of us. We can use these as a bridge to reach into the next generation and talk to them about calling on the name of the Lord through prayer. This is how we don't just seek him, but we also speak him. So let me give you a challenge for this week Every time you use your phone, take a moment to pray.
Speaker 1:That's what I'm doing Just whisper a short call to God. It might be a thank you, a request or just a Lord, I'm here. Or it could be as simple as Lord, I need you. Lord, I need you. Prayer doesn't have to be formal or fancy Like a good phone call. It just needs to be honest. So, since phones are now a part of our daily life, let's use them as reminders for us and for the next generation to engage in spiritual communication as well as physical communication. Just like we teach our little ones how to dial 911 in an emergency, let's teach them to call on God in every moment, big or small. And well, let's do that ourselves, and not just for emergencies, but staying plugged in and calling continually.
Speaker 1:God's promise In Jeremiah 29, verse 12, is an invitation for today. He says call on me and come and pray to me and I will listen to you. So, friend, let's engage that kind of prayer life and then let's model that kind of prayer life for the next generation. Let's live it, let's speak it, let's make it real, one call at a time. Right now, I want to call on God. Let me live it, let's speak it, let's make it real, one call at a time.
Speaker 1:Right now, I want to call on God. Let me pray this for us right now. Scripture says, and I pray, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you. In my prayers, I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, and I pray that prayer, that power, that hope, that joy, that understanding over each of us today as we lean in to the plugged-in prayer life. Oh, friend, god bless you, be encouraged, keep calling on Him and until next time, stay plugged in.
Speaker 2:Thanks for joining us in this podcast episode. Be sure to check out the Coordinating Conversation Guide. The heart of the Family Disciple Me ministry is to meet with God in our own lives. Then make Him known to those he's entrusted to us. You can go to familydisciplemeorg for more information about our ministry. God bless you, friend. Now go seek Him, speak Him.