The Boundless Show

How to maximize your weekends, plus Nancy Pearcey talks toxic masculinity, and should you tell a guy at church you want him to ask you out?   Featured musical artist: Kerrie Roberts   Roundtable: Ready for the Weekend!   We all look forward to the weekend, but how should we make the best use of our time and freedom? Our guests share what they love about Saturdays and Sundays, plus a few helpful ideas for prioritizing and managing our time, and common pitfalls to avoid that can gobble up precious hours and leave us feeling unproductive.           Leave Us a Voicemail   Culture: The Truth About Toxic Masculinity   Men today hear cultural messages on what it means to be a man: make lots of money, drive a nice car, date a beautiful girl; in short, be powerful and successful. But these things are self-driven and the opposite of what God calls masculinity: leading selflessly; protecting, providing for, and serving others. Professor Nancy Pearcey is a well-known researcher and writer on this topic, and joins us to separate the truth from the lies when it comes to appropriate manifestations of manhood in our families, churches and communities.       The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes   Find Nancy’s Website   Inbox: Should I Tell Him I Like Him?    She’s known a guy at her church for two years and has hung out with him socially many times. She really wants him to ask her out, so is it time to admit her feelings? Lisa Anderson weighs in.         Boundless Episode: I’ll Ask You Out If…: Episode 138   Boundless Article: Is it OK for a woman to ask out a man?

Know if the person you’re dating is maturing or not, plus overcoming body image issues, and favorite foods of the Boundless team.    Featured musical artist: David Dunn Roundtable: Prioritizing Growth in Dating Maturing together can be one of the greatest joys of dating someone. But how can you tell if the person you’re seeing is truly pursuing growth — or if they’re all talk and no action? Our panel shares strategies for assessing if your significant other is actually maturing, how to not be someone’s Holy Spirit, and why you need to be humble and teachable yourself.         Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: A Conversation About Body Image Dr. Becky Taylor battled disordered eating and body image as a teenager and young adult — a struggle that still has ramifications in her life today. She’s now an eating disorder expert and professor at Colorado Christian University where she daily counsels young adults on body image issues of all kinds (e.g. not just food). In our conversation, she shows us how to embrace our God-given identities, how to recognize wrong perspectives, and where to start on a journey toward healing — including a powerful lesson from the children’s book “When God Made You.”      Table for Two: Biblical Counsel for Eating Disorders  Link to Counseling Services Find Becky Taylor Inbox: What’s Your Favorite Food?  We received a light-hearted question about our favorite foods. The entire Boundless team weighs in with our opinions! 

What your style aesthetic says about you, plus finding value in entertainment, and how to be a better listener.     Featured musical artist: Nathan Tasker Roundtable: Trendsetters and Old Souls Fashion choices, home decor, life hacks, music and more. All of these are indicators of our culture — or our resistance to it. When it comes to being current or wishing for times past, where do you fit in? Our guests describe their place on the cultural continuum, talk through the pros and cons, and suggest how to appreciate people who are different from yourself.        Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: What Good Entertainment Teaches Us We can learn a lot from the entertainment we consume — especially films and television. Understanding a culture, or someone’s unique experience, or even learning about history — all of these can be accomplished by watching a well-told story. This week our Plugged In experts address how movies can be good conversation starters, and they’ll give us some of their best recommendations to get us going.       Becoming a Screen-Savvy Family: How to Navigate a Media-Saturated World–and Why We Should  Link to Plugged In Website  Inbox: Am I Talking Too Much?  Our listener says that when she gets together with friends, she finds herself talking too much. She wants to be a better listener, but how? One of our counselors weighs in.      Link to Counseling Services

Identifying sneaky (and often accepted) idols, plus how to stay away from online scammers, and understanding the basics of holistic health.    Featured musical artist: Aaron Shust   Roundtable: Tearing Down Our Most Common Idols   We all have things we enjoy — and many of them are very good things. Maybe you love sports, or working out, or doing the job you do. Maybe you desire to be married, or maybe you have fun following your favorite celebrities or even Christian influencers on social media. But at what point do these things become idols? Are you afraid they’ve eclipsed your faith and even God himself in your own time and affections? Our guests describe some of the idols they’ve propped up, how they finally got honest with themselves, and what they did to reprioritize their hearts and attention.         Leave Us a Voicemail   Culture: Protect Yourself From Online Scams   Identity theft. Social media scams. Bank account hacks. With so many opportunities to fall prey to online scammers, how do you keep yourself safe? Cybersecurity expert Rhett Saunders divulges the latest tricks and traps, and shares steps you can take to avoid being ripped off online.        The 40-Day Social Media Fast: Exchange Your Online Distractions for Real-Life Devotion    PDF: Tips for a Safe Online Life   Inbox: Taking Care of Your Temple    Living a healthy lifestyle is not just nutrition, sleep or mental health. It’s all of that and so much more. God cares about our bodies — not just our souls — so how do we follow biblical principles for treating our bodies as the temples He says they are? Counselor Patrick Hill weighs in.        Link to Counseling Services

Finding fun and inspiration in other women, plus Bailey Hurley on what to look for in a friend, and when you’re frustrated with where life has you.    Featured musical artist:  All Sons & Daughters   Roundtable: Finding Quality Female Friends   Ladies, who’s someone from your friend group you can laugh and have fun with? And who inspires and challenges you? The truth is, we need both types of friends. This week, a group of women tells which of their friendships bring out the best in them, how they cultivate them, and why these types of friendships matter.        Leave Us a Voicemail   Culture: Friendship That Goes the Distance   What’s the current state of your friendships? As a friendship coach, Bailey Hurley is passionate about helping people develop healthy relationships. She joins us this week to share strategic filters she applies for choosing friends, how to have realistic expectations of others, and what it looks like to be a giver and not just a taker.           Together Is a Beautiful Place: Finding, Keeping, and Loving Our Friends    Inbox: Should I Be Further Along in Life?    At age 25, our listener isn’t sure what he wants to do for a career. It’s to a point where he’s feeling aimless and frustrated. How can he figure out what kind of job he wants and if it’ll be enough to provide for a family? Counselor Joannie DeBrito weighs in.

Finding fun and inspiration in other men, plus Scott Kedersha on doing devotions as a dating couple, and how guys can serve single moms.             Featured musical artist:  Love and the Outcome    Roundtable: Finding Quality Male Friends   Guys, who’s someone from your friend group you can laugh and have fun with? And who inspires and challenges you? The truth is, we need both types of friends. This week, a group of guys tells which of their friendships bring out the best in them, how they cultivate them, and why these types of friendships matter.                               Leave Us a Voicemail   Find Us on YouTube   Culture: Devotions for Dating Couples Spiritual compatibility is the most important part of your dating relationship, but we’ve heard that going too deep spiritually with your date can force inappropriate intimacy. Is there a balance? Pastor Scott Kedersha from Harris Creek Baptist Church has written a devotional for couples who are dating or engaged. He’ll discuss healthy boundaries in praying with your date, how to study the Bible together, and why knowing a person’s spiritual patterns and beliefs is good intel for assessing marriage potential.           The Ready or Knot Prayer Guide: 100 Prayers for Dating and Engaged Couples    Inbox: Men Serving Single Moms   Our listener has many friends who are single mothers. He wants to reach out and offer practical help, but how can he do so without overstepping his bounds? Counselor Patrick Hill weighs in.

Help your married friends set you up, plus how to read the news with discernment, and thoughts on dating couples doing devotions together.   Featured musical artist: JJ Heller  Roundtable: Your Role in Being Set Up It’s flattering when friends and family try to set you up. It can lead to a happy and successful dating relationship — or even marriage. At other times, it can lead to awkwardness and strained friendships. Our guests share their perspectives on the dos and don’ts of successful setups. With funny stories and practical takeaways, this conversation will give you tools to make your dating journey smoother and more fun.                   Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: How to Navigate the News Today’s news is littered with bias. Everyone has an agenda, and it’s hard to separate the facts from opinion, interpretation, and flat-out manipulation. How can we determine what’s actual news and ensure we’re getting all sides of a story? Paul Batura and Gary Schneeberger are both communications pros and news junkies, having worked in radio, newspapers, public relations and beyond. They’ll share their best tips for practicing discernment when taking in headlines and commentary from around the world.       A Practical Guide to Culture: Helping the Next Generation Navigate Today’s World  Link to Daily Citizen Inbox: Doing Devotions as a Couple You and your boyfriend or girlfriend want to encourage growth in each other’s relationship with God, but should that involve praying and studying Scripture together? Counselor Glenn Lutjens weighs in.

Improve your listening skills, plus breaking negative family patterns, and why should Christians dress modestly?          Featured musical artist:  About a Mile   Roundtable: Improve Your Listening Skills Listening is a lost art. It’s also a skill that requires focus, intention, and care for the other person. While some people are naturally better listeners, anyone can get better at making others feel heard. Our guests discuss their own struggles with listening and talk through ideas for improvement including focus, honest feedback, and how to handle interactions with a poor listener.                Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: Breaking Bad Family Cycles We’ve all been affected by family brokenness. For some, it was our parents’ divorce. Others had a parent abandon them. Still others grew up in homes filled with anger, blame, shame or grief. With so much heartbreak and negative history, many young adults wonder if having their own family someday is even worth it. Members of our Focus on the Family counseling team give us  hope for starting over, breaking cycles, and honoring God in the process.       Hope Again: When Life Hurts and Dreams Fade  Link to Counseling Services Inbox: Does God Care What I Wear? Christians talk about how it’s important to dress modestly, but why, and what does that actually mean? Counselor Joannie DeBrito weighs in.

Fun ideas for boosting your intelligence, plus Alisa Childers tackles more sneaky cultural lies, and is dating multiple people at once OK?           Featured musical artist:  John Waller Roundtable: Boost Your Intelligence You don’t need to spend all your free time scrolling social media or binging Netflix. What if you resolved to improve your intelligence in 2024? Our guests share what areas they want to become more competent in this year and why. They’ll also discuss how they plan to make it happen without becoming performance-driven or arrogant.                   Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: The World Is Lying to Us (Part 2) Have you heard someone reference “their truth”? It may sound harmless — even affirming — but it’s a concept that is founded on a lie. Sadly, numerous untruths have infiltrated our cultural vocabulary, and sometimes even Christians don’t recognize how deceptive they are. Christian apologist and author Alisa Childers joins us for a candid conversation around unbiblical statements, platitudes and promises that sound good but are in fact dangerous. In part two she addresses the myths of “God just wants you to be happy,” “You shouldn’t judge,” and “It’s all about love.”     Live Your Truth and Other Lies: Exposing Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed   Inbox: Is Dating Multiple People OK? Is it acceptable to date multiple people at the same time? Our host Lisa Anderson weighs in.

Staying inspired even when it’s tough, plus Alisa Childers tackles sneaky cultural lies, and should you move to a new state for a fresh start?           Featured musical artist:  Tauren Wells Roundtable: How Can I Stay Motivated?  We’re several weeks into the new year — and it’s already hard to sustain those big plans and goals we made on January 1 for starting something great or stopping something unhealthy. Staying the course is no easy task, but what if there are ways to remain inspired and continue making progress, even on days when you feel like giving up? Our panel discusses how they’re staying motivated this year.                  Leave Us a Voicemail Culture: The World Is Lying to Us (Part 1) Have you heard someone reference “their truth”? It may sound harmless — even affirming — but it’s a concept that is founded on a lie. Sadly, numerous untruths have infiltrated our cultural vocabulary, and sometimes even Christians don’t recognize how deceptive they are. Christian apologist and author Alisa Childers joins us for a candid conversation around unbiblical statements, platitudes and promises that sound good but are in fact dangerous. In part one she covers the myths of “Live your truth,” “You are enough,” and “You should put yourself first.”     Live Your Truth and Other Lies: Exposing Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed   Inbox: Should I Move to a New State? Our listener wants to move somewhere with a higher percentage of young adults who love the outdoors and hiking. But is this enough reason to uproot and relocate? Boundless producer John Peardon weighs in.