The Built Different Podcast with Dr. Zach Clinton

Did you know that the word “passion” has its roots in the Latin word pati, which means 'to suffer or endure.' Therefore, at the root of passion is suffering. One of the best movies ever made is Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of The Christ”. What most people believe this movie is all about is what most people believe the word Passion is all about - love, adoration, and affection for something. The truth is, yes, that is partially true, however, this movie is actually more about the suffering that Christ endured while on the cross. Jesus had and still has such a passion for His people and therefore He endured great suffering to demonstrate His love for us. Unfortunately, Satan loves to use anything he can to make us feel alone, isolated, overlooked, and even forgotten. Often times, he uses negative experiences, tragic events, toxic relationships, wounds, mistakes, and even bad decisions from our pasts to let the trauma affect the truth we believe about ourselves, others, and even the Lord. Thankfully today’s Built Different Guest, Stu Epperson Jr., is committed and passionate about spreading the light and truth of the gospel of Christ. Stu is the Founder and President of the Truth Network as well as host of the nationally syndicated radio show “Truth Talk Live”. In this episode, Stu joins us to share his personal testimony and how he is continually able to find joy and cling to the truth of God’s Word to help him navigate the challenges and adversity life has thrown his way! Don’t miss this powerful conversation! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

It is all too easy to get caught up in comparison culture: Do I have enough money? Am I respected enough by my peers? Am I beautiful? Am I worthy? It makes sense that we feel so downcast while looking through the comparison lens because “comparison is the thief of joy”. If you feel caught up in this cycle, our guest today is ready to reaffirm your worth and help you to put a halt to the comparison game through her specific life experience and prowess in the medical arena. Today’s Built Different Guest is Dermatologist Megan Allison talks about why our worth and our beauty is not merely “skin deep”. Megan begins by giving medical advice on how to be good stewards of our body by taking care of our skin, shares her personal battle against acne and how she overcame the physical and mental challenges that came with it, and lastly applied scriptural wisdom to the topic of beauty and comparison. Megan’s unique perspective as a physician assistant gives us deep encouragement to reorient our hearts towards God’s perspective of worth and beauty as she challenges our community to “remember our worth”, that it is “okay to ask for help”, and to “stop the comparison game”. Imagine how you could live differently if you knew the source of your true worth! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

What if I told you today, the life you’re looking for is WITHIN YOUR REACH? Would you live any differently? Would you work a little harder? Would you love a little deeper? If you’re answer is yes, then what are you waiting for? Today’s podcast episode is all about how you can begin creating the life you want to live through the power of GOOD DECISION MAKING. 1 Kings Chapter 3, Solomon was given one request from the Lord. He could have asked for anything in the world, but he chose to ask for WISDOM. What wisdom can also be viewed as is the ability or skillset in making more effective and beneficial decisions. I’ve heard it said that Decisions determine direction and direction determines destiny. Today’s Built Different Guest understands the weight and affects decision making can have on our lives. Our guest today is Dr. Karl Benzio who is a leading Christian Psychiatrist and serves as the medical director for the American Association of Christian Counselors and is the cofounder and medical director at Honey Lake Clinic as well. Dr. Karl shares his powerful testimony, and he also discusses his SPEARS decision making model with us so we can begin implementing these simple steps into our daily lives and decisions as well. As Dr. Karl mentions in this episode, we have the ability to slow our minds down. There are these steps or space that happens between a stimulus or a situation and our decision or response to it. Viktor Frankl says, “In that space is our power to choose, and in that choice is our freedom and our growth.” What if you were just one or a couple of good decisions away from living a completely different life?  Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

I don’t know about you, but it can sometimes be really difficult to not get caught up in the trap of the comparison culture that we live in. Always wanting to look better, make more money, buy bigger things, etc. to not only compete with other people but to compete with what we believe other people’s expectations are of us. But we must remember, comparison is the thief of joy and robs us of the abudant life that God has always intended for us. Thankfully, our Built Different Guest today, who is an incredibly powerful and passionate world-renowned communicator, podcaster, and best-selling author, Lisa Bevere, has dedicated her life to reminding people of their worth, value, and calling. One of our favorite quotes from Lisa says, “God doesn’t love us equally… He loves us uniquely! And Unique means without rival. You never have to compete or fight for the love and affection of the Lord.” In and throughout this entire episode, Lisa wants to remind you that God sees you. He hears you. He understands you. And He loves you more than you could ever possibly imagine. He is with you, and He has called you to greater things. Don’t give up now. Just keep pursuing Him, His will, and His calling and purpose for your life. Stop comparing, God created you intricately and uniquely to change the world. JUST BE YOU! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

When experiencing difficulty, pain, challenge, hardship, uncertainty, fear, worry, anxiety, addiction, and more, have you ever just questioned where God was? Does He even hear my cry? Does He even know my thoughts? Will He ever show up? Why is this happening to me? Or how about the infamous, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”This makes me think of the book of Habakkuk where even in the midst of Habakkuk’s doubt, uncertainty, and frustration, God reminds Him that even though you may not understand what’s happening now, if you just TRUST me and live by FAITH, you’ll see that I can make ALL things work together for the good of those who love me and whom I have called according to my purpose (Romans 8:28). Today’s Built Different Guest is no stranger to affliction and adversity! Grant Troutt is one of the most kind, genuine, and life-giving people you will ever meet, but life wasn’t and still isn’t always easy! Having experienced countless injuries that eventually ended his athletic aspirations, to getting lost in addiction… Grant has had his fair share of anger and doubting God. Yet, even though this life is hard and God never promised otherwise, He has reminded Grant that His plan is still perfect and His timing is never late! He just simply asks us to trust His plan and pleads with us to not lose our hope, because hope is never lost, sometimes it just needs to be redirected. Hope is a person! Our prayer is that through this episode, you would feel encouraged, refreshed, and challenged to keep trusting, believing, and surrendering every day over to what the Lord has planned for your life! You know why? Because the Lord gets your pain. He understands your suffering. He too has experienced it and is currently in your midst experiencing it all with you right now! He has never left your side! Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses…” but the beautiful thing is that as 1 Peter 5:10 reminds us that, “After you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”My friends this too shall pass, and as Grant reminds us throughout this episode, what if your most PAINFUL moments and seasons were PREPARING you for your greatest PURPOSE in this life! Don’t give up now! When we TRUST in our trustworthy God, we don’t need to know why. We only need to know Him. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

One of my favorite quotes from this episode reads, “Most Christians are like the Arctic River - frozen at the mouth.” Have you ever wondered why it can be so difficult for us to share the good news of the gospel? Maybe it’s out of fear, wanting to just blend or fit in, maybe it’s so you’re not labeled that Jesus freak by your friend group. But unfortunately people are lost, wandering, and every day dying internally because sometimes we are too afraid to simply speak up! Today’s Built Different Guests include two amazing men of God, Jim VanSteenhouse and Sal Sberna! Both of these men have unbelievably powerful testimonies that I cannot wait for you to hear in this week’s episode. It’s amazing what God will use as an interruption in our lives to spark urgency and revival within our culture and society today who we know desperately need it! what if the change we were looking and even praying for all started with you? Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

It’s pretty evident that our country has been going through some challenging times here recently. A lot of pain, heartbreak, and devastation to say the least. One thing that has been breaking my heart specifically is the effects that we are seeing within our youth, adolescents, and next generation. For countless reasons including the crumbling of the home, traumatic events, and so much more, kids are being predisposed to experiencing mental health struggles and challenges such as issues with self-esteem, anger, emotion regulation, fear of abandonment, and we’re even seeing a staggering uptick in anxiety, depression, addiction, and suicidality as well. Thankfully, today’s Built Different Guest is someone who has been on the frontlines for quite some time as he has a strong heart and passion to help impact and influence our next generation, Dr. Jay Strack. Dr. Strack is the President and Founder of Student Leadership University (SLU), and he has had the opportunity of speaking and sharing within countless high schools, colleges, universities, companies, organizations, and professional sports teams across the world. Having experienced an incredibly difficult upbringing himself filled with abuse, broken homes, juvenile detention centers, and more, Jay wants people to understand that they are capable, seen, and pursued by a God who still has a plan for their lives. Your past, mistakes, challenges, and adversity do not define you. God fully knows you and fully loves you. Just be sure that you’re not wasting your sorrows! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

When experiencing difficult seasons of life filled with stress and anxiety, where do you turn or what do you do to find freedom? Today’s Built Different Guest, Rebekah Lyons, has found 4 unique rhythms to help trade stress and anxiety for a life of peace and purpose! Even though Rebekah has reached some mountain top moments being a nationally acclaimed speaker, podcaster, and best-selling author of 3 incredible books: Rhythms of Renewal, You are Free, and Freefall to Fly, she has also experienced some deep valleys which have included mental health battles with anxiety, panic attacks, and depression. Her four rhythms which include Rest, Restore, Connect, and Create have opened her eyes to not just managing and going through the motions of life, but truly thriving and living the abundant life that John 10:10 describes! With God at the foundation and intentionality throughout the healing and recovery process, you too can find the freedom that you’re looking for! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Did you know that Anxiety Disorders are the most common mental health disorders and affect nearly 30% of U.S. adults at some point during their life? I believe at some point in all of our lives, we’ve all felt a little anxious about something - a current situation, relationship, finances, work life, the future, etc. But how do we stop anxiety from robbing our joy and stealing our peace? Thankfully, today’s Built Different Guest, Dr. Gregory Jantz, who is a leading expert on the topic of mental health, especially on the topic of anxiety, is here to hopefully bring some clarity to that question. In this episode, through Dr. Jantz’s wisdom, knowledge, and expertise, he breaks down the differences between anxiety and worry/fear, some common signs of anxiety in our day to day lives, as well as some simple tools and techniques that we can begin implementing into our mental health hygiene to spark the peace that God initially intended for us. Philippians 4:6 reads, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything through prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God.” Although anxiety will speak lies, God always wants to remind you of His truth. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Have you ever found yourself trapped or stuck in patterns you no longer desire? Maybe you’ve been hurt or wounded in the past and you’ve turned to anything to numb or anesthetize that pain, and now that very thing you looked to for instant relief is now your greatest source of destruction. Well there is good news my friends, recovery is for everyone and recovery is possible for you. Our Built Different Guest today is the Pastor of Temple City Church in Selma, NC as well as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), John Eklund. In this episode, John shares his powerful testimony involving brokenness, addiction, and suicidal ideation, yet in his darkest moment God showed up and provided a spark for his recovery journey. He has since then written a book and founded an exceptional program called Recovery Alive - Known for Resurrecting Hope through the power, people, and process of the 12 steps. John’s passion rests in helping others find the hope they feel has been lost and the freedom they never knew was possible. Listen to this episode, and be prepared to start your Recovery Journey today! Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.