Shows / Life Over Coffee
Life Over Coffee
Rick launched the Life Over Coffee global training network in 2008 to bring hope and help for you and others by creating resources that spark conversations for transformation. His primary responsibilities are resource creation and leadership development, which he does through speaking, writing, podcasting, and educating. In 1990 he earned a BA in Theology and, in 1991, a BS in Education. In 1993, he received his ordination into Christian ministry, and in 2000 he graduated with an MA in…
Episodes
Life Over CoffeeEp. 538 Jacob Valk: Parenting and P*rnography, the Masterclass
Shows Main Idea – Parenting & Pornography is a masterclass-style video series developed by Into The Light Ministries. Its purpose is to equip parents with…
- Life Over Coffee
Parenting Day 2: Quality Parenting Comes from Good Marriages
Quality parenting, strong marriages, marital unity, biblical marriage, communication in marriage, teamwork in parenting, spiritual leadership, Christian…
- Life Over Coffee
Parenting Day 1 – Parenting From Zero To Adulthood
The parenting goal is to release your child into adulthood as an individual living under God’s authority for His glory. This parenting process happens in three…
Life Over CoffeeParenting Day 4: Two Rules Every Parent Must Teach Their Children
Biblical parenting incrementally releases children from your rules and authority while placing them under the most influential governing dynamic known to…
- Life Over Coffee
Ten Ways to Kill Your Marriage
Marriage counseling has historically been the most common type of counseling I have done, which makes sense because the marriage relationship is unique in that…
- Life Over Coffee
Here Is Practical Help to Restore a Broken Marriage
Some husbands and wives can have a hard time putting a broken marriage back together. Typically, expectations and disappointments create a backlog of…
- Life Over Coffee
Something Must Come Between Us, or We'll Hurt Each Other
The cross of Christ has wonder-working power. It can change you and your relationships, but the process is not a passive “let go and let God” exercise. If…
- Life Over Coffee
Do You Think It's Right to Correct My Authoritarian Husband?
No human has absolute authority over another. This perspective should be common sense, but it’s not for everyone, including Christians. A dictatorial husband…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 535 Understanding EMDR with Dr. Rhenn Cherry
Shows Main Idea – EMDR stands for Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing Therapy. Though it has been around for decades, it has gained a lot of momentum…
- Life Over Coffee
Sex for a Woman, According to a Man
Sexual intimacy is one of the quickest indicators that reveals how a couple is doing in their marriage. Why? Because it is the most physical and intimate thing…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 534 Fear of Man: Cultivating a God-centered Community
Show Main Idea: A God-centered community provides mutual accountability, encouragement in truth, and prayerful support, helping us to walk in freedom from…
- Life Over Coffee
Do You Know What Your Wife Is Thinking?
Most relationships begin with transparency, honesty, courage, and optimism. At some point, these things break down. The husband and wife drift from each other…
- Life Over Coffee
The Orientation of the Home: Follow the Leader
Every home has a leader. Someone must be in charge while everyone else follows the de-facto leader. I’m speaking of hierarchy in relationships, not the…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 533 Fear of Man: Steps to Overcome Approval Addiction, Lesson 3
Show Main Idea: We dive into understanding our identity in Christ, finding security in God’s provision. Through practical steps—confession, renewing the mind…
- Life Over Coffee
His Needs, Her Needs Aren't Real Needs
How do you know when a desire for love has changed into a need for love? It’s an excellent question, and the first place to begin a diagnosis like this is with…
- Life Over Coffee
The Reason We Blew Up Our Marriage
Even with the best intentions and truest love, a marriage can go to some dangerous and dark places. Ours went there, which is why I decided the best thing we…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 532 Fear of Man: Reorienting Your Focus: Pleasing God Over Man, Lesson 2
Show Main Idea: This lesson reveals how God’s unconditional love frees us from the trap of seeking human validation. By renewing our minds with Scripture, we…
- Life Over Coffee
Let Me Draw You a Picture of a Marriage in Trouble
The best marriages are those where the distinct uniqueness of each partner works in a beautiful symmetry that enhances the other’s strengths while compensating…
- Life Over Coffee
Three Life Choices You Don't Want to Miss Before You Die
If you could live your life over again, how would you live it differently? What values would you instill to give yourself a meaningful life? What if you could…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 531 Fear of Man: Understanding the Root of Approval Addiction, Lesson 1
Show Main Idea: This lesson examines how a misplaced desire impacts our identity, breeds insecurity, and prevents genuine spiritual growth. Through practical…
- Life Over Coffee
I Think I Married the Wrong Person; Please Help Me
It is easy to make a decision when things seem clear and the future appears bright. With an optimistic heart, you decide on that thing, only to discover months…
- Life Over Coffee
Al Haywood's Journey with Life Over Coffee's Mastermind Program
Shows Main Idea – Meet Al Haywood, a counselor and pastor from northeast Georgia who has dedicated his life to shepherding others in their walks with God. Al…
- Life Over Coffee
How To Help a Double-Minded Person
Every person has two heads. The human community is a world of two-headed people. James called our common-to-man predicament double-mindedness, just one of the…
- Life Over Coffee
Torment Is Trying to Be Perfect
Have you ever tried to be perfect? Is it hard for you to let others know you messed up? Are you tempted to present yourself in ways that are not exactly true…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 529 Webinar: Parenting: Practically Four Tips You Can Implement Today
Show Main Idea: Parenting can be challenging, but it’s not an unresolvable puzzle. The Bible offers guidance to help parents lead their families in a…
- Life Over Coffee
May I Change My Mind After Deciding Something?
You have made your decision in faith. At the time, it seemed like the right thing to do. Now you're having second thoughts. Is it okay to change your mind? Or…
- Life Over Coffee
Guidelines for Making Decisions as a Couple
Biblical decision-making is not that difficult if you are the only one making the decision. There are challenges, of course, but it's much easier if you're the…
- Life Over Coffee
Webinar: Overcoming Anger How It Complicates Our Relationships
Show Main Idea: We will explore the impact of unresolved anger on relationships. Through a gospel-centered lens, we will offer practical tools and biblical…
- Life Over Coffee
How to Live with People with Different Preferences
The gospel practicalized is a transcendent lifestyle that overrides cultural and religious traditions, preferences, and expectations. The convolution between…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 527: Follow the Leader, Creating a Redemptive Community
Show Main Idea: Our heavenly Father is the de facto leader of our lives and homes. To build strong marriages and families, we must determine that we will…
- Life Over Coffee
A Christian Perspective on the Presidential Election
Every four years in America, its citizens have the opportunity to vote for the next President of the United States. It’s the privilege of free countries where…
- Life Over Coffee
Who Are You Voting for This November?
This presidential election cycle is my sixteenth. Admittedly, I do not remember the first one because I was one year old, and they would not let me vote. It…
- Life Over Coffee
Why Christians Should Engage in Politics
Someone asked me why I share political messages on my personal X account. He then followed up by saying that politics stink. It was not one of those “stay in…
- Life Over Coffee
That Time I Went to a Trump Rally
In the summer of 2018, we were visiting Lucia’s sister in Minnesota when she told us about a nearby Trump Rally in Fargo, North Dakota. Our van just so…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 525 Dr. Jenn Chen, Biblical Counseling and Mental Disorder Diagnosis
Show Main Idea: Rick Thomas talks to Dr. Jenn Chen about her latest book, Biblical Counseling and Mental Disorder Diagnosis. Dr. Chen, formerly an integrated…
- Life Over Coffee
Why People Miss the Point About Donald Trump
One of the striking surprises about the time we live is the imperceptible and incremental changes that happen culturally. Things move so slowly, and we’re so…
- Life Over Coffee
Why People Miss the Point About Donald Trump
One of the striking surprises about the time we live is the imperceptible and incremental changes that happen culturally. Things move so slowly, and we’re so…
- Life Over Coffee
The One Thing Worse Than Admititng You're a Racist
There is a twist of irony when one person condemns another, even if the accusation is correct. Jesus was right when He said, “Judge not, that you be not…
- Life Over Coffee
To Wear a Mask or Not Is Not the Question
In 2020, the number one question circulating in people’s minds was, “Should I wear a mask?” Perhaps you wore one, and it was a non-issue. Praise God. I’m sure…
- Life Over Coffee
Two Degrees of Woke: The Innocent Idealist and Angry Activist
One of the most hotly debated terms this century is the word woke. It means to be aware, as in, “I have woke up to [this cause].” Formerly, you were not aware…
- Life Over Coffee
The New Slave Owner Is a Liberal Paternallistic Government
Our country is in a tailspin. The most popular word an immediate pathway to cancellation in America today is racism. Two hundred-plus years of striving and…
- Life Over Coffee
An Analysis of How to Destroy a Family, Church, or Country
When it comes to human relationships and societal structures, there are threads of unity and discord woven side by side. It’s a delicate balance between…
- Life Over Coffee
The Strategic and Sad Way a Great Nation Falls
The Bible is clear: those who forget God will not endure (Job 8:13). This truth applies not only to nations but also to churches and individuals. God, who sits…
- Life Over Coffee
Helpful Tips on How to Make Decisions, Big and Small
Every day, you have to make many decisions, big and small. Some of them are life-changing events, while others aren’t as consequential. It would shock many of…
- Life Over Coffee
How to Make a Good Decision about Anything in Faith
When deciding anything, you must be in faith regarding that decision, which is why the most important question you will ever ask yourself when making a…
- Life Over Coffee
There Are No His or Her Problems in Marriage
There are no his versus her problems in anyone’s marriage. There are one flesh problems. Your physical body is an excellent illustration of this worldview. If…
- Life Over Coffee
A Few Essential Qualities of an Effective Husband
Every gardener has a garden. Common sense? If you plan to take up gardening, you must have a garden. Another necessary assumption is that it's vital to know…
- Life Over Coffee
Defining and Establishing Your Life and Marriage
If you were helping a couple build a stable marriage, where would you begin? What would be your starting point? What is the main thing that you would want to…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 31 Marriage Devotion: Ask This Question Every Day
Your spouse is two parts—body and soul. Every person is a dichotomy—organic and nonorganic or physical and spiritual. Though the two parts interrelate and…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 516 Seth Gruber, and The 1916 Project
Shows Main Idea – Seth Gruber’s clear, concise, and persuasive approach has impacted thousands across the United States, equipping audiences with the tools to…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 30 Marriage Devotion: Husband's Dilemma: I Lead You; I Sin Against You
Biff does not want to lead his wife. He feels like a hypocrite trying to lead her while sporadically sinning against her. Biff asked his counselor, “How can I…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 29 Marriage Devotion: Ten Ways to Ignore Your Marriage Problems
Resist sin in your marriage at every turn. Do not think that you are the exception or that you are somehow above sin, and it will not destroy you. When you see…
Life Over CoffeeParenting Day 27 – When All You’re Doing Is Correcting Your Child
When your children are young, it can seem as though all you’re doing is correcting them. As soon as they begin walking upright and stringing syllables…
- Life Over Coffee
Ep. 515 Rosaria Butterfield, from Lesbianism to the Gopel's Hope
Shows Main Idea – Rosaria Butterfield, a former tenured professor of English and women’s studies at Syracuse University, converted to Christ in what she…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 28 Marriage Devotion: God Is There Before You Get There
You may not know where your marriage is leading you, but there is one thing I want you to know: Regardless of your journey, you can rest assured that God is…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 27 Marriage Devotion: Suffering Produces Strength
Discomfort in life is as assured as death and taxes. There are some things you can count on, and personal suffering is one of them. It is part of the package…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 18 Marriage Devotion: Seven Things If Your Spouse Is Difficult
There is a good chance your spouse is not everything you hoped for in a marriage. Of course, neither are you. Imperfect people have a way of disappointing…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 17 Marriage Devotion: Three Steps to Be an Excellent Spouse
This devotion is in a three-part sequential order. The second step builds on the first, and the third relies upon the second. If you want to enjoy your…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 26 Marriage Devotion: The Crucible of Suffering When the Marriage Does Not Change
Warning: This devotion is not for a spouse in an abusive marriage. If your marriage is abusive, find help immediately to stop the abuse. It is important to…
- Life Over Coffee
Day 25 Marriage Devotion: Double Confession: How to Respond When Sinned Against
Biff sinned against Mable, and Mable was hurt. Biff asked Mable to forgive him. Mable forgave Biff. They reconciled—but not really. Though Mable forgave Biff…