The Be Unbound Podcast

Be Unbound
  • 4.7 (17)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Weekly

The Be Unbound Podcast teaches young adults and their parents how to ask the right questions, take action, and understand key truths that will enable them to live well, by showcasing conversations with guests who display what it looks like to be extraordinary at the ordinary.

  1. 6d ago

    Difficult Coworkers, Difficult Bosses, and the Mission That Unites Us

    Your coworker may be difficult. They're still made in the image of God. What do you do when you can't just walk away? In this episode, Jonathan and David share stories from their first jobs, from a pizza shop to an auto parts store, and ask how Christians should deal with difficult coworkers. The answer starts with a foundation that doesn't depend on whether anyone else shares your beliefs: every person you work with is made in the image of God. That means they deserve respect, they reflect something of God that only they can, and we are called to love them, which goes deeper than simply being nice. From there, the conversation turns to the mission. Before you decide how to handle a difficult person, ask what you are all there to accomplish. Shared values can be ranked in very different orders, and some workplaces leave more room for differing worldviews than others. When the mission aligns, it gives you common ground to build relationships on, and those relationships may eventually open doors to deeper conversations. Jonathan's story of watching a boss take credit for his idea shows how ego can sabotage a mission, and how much can be accomplished when you stop caring who gets the credit. The hardest case is a difficult boss. Jonathan's surprising first step is to ask what the worst thing is that could happen if you quit today. Remembering that you are not your job, and that your identity is in Christ, frees you to decide whether the job is worth staying in. Only then do tactics work, because your heart is no longer set on revenge or justice. The goal isn't to ignore the friction. It's to step back, remember why you're there, and love the people God has put in front of you. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Difficult Coworkers, Difficult Bosses, and the Mission That Unites Us

  2. Oct 15

    Is Hardship Necessary?

    Why do some of our most meaningful experiences come from the things we would never have chosen for ourselves? In this episode, Jonathan and David explore the uncomfortable truth that hardship may be essential to a rich and meaningful life. From exhausting physical challenges to seasons of suffering we never asked for, they consider how effort, endurance, and difficulty shape us in ways that comfort and convenience cannot. But what happens when the hardship doesn't have a clear finish line and we have no idea how much longer we have to endure? So how do we keep going when we don't know when things will get better? Jonathan offers two principles to hold onto: God redeems all things, and endurance is underrated. David and Jonathan also discuss the importance of prayer and Scripture, drawing especially from Psalms 20–24. Those passages move through hope, disappointment, lament, comfort, and the reminder that the whole earth belongs to God. Faith doesn't require us to pretend that hardship isn't painful. It invites us to bring that pain honestly before God and trust that he remains faithful, even when relief doesn't come on our timetable. Ultimately, living well doesn't mean avoiding every difficulty or forcing ourselves to maintain a sunny attitude when life is hard. It means learning to endure faithfully, allowing hardship to deepen our dependence on God, and remembering that the finish line of this life leads to something greater. We may not know which mile we're in, but we can keep praying, keep returning to Scripture, and keep being faithful with what's in front of us. The hardship you're facing today may be shaping a depth of faith, joy, and character you couldn't develop any other way. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Is Hardship Necessary?

  3. Oct 7

    Watched, Ticketed, and Tempted: What Should Christians Do About Flock Cameras?

    The camera can issue the ticket. But who gets to ask whether it was right? And is it ever okay for a Christian to cut one down? In this episode, Jonathan and David take on one of the most talked-about surveillance technologies in the news: Flock cameras. These AI-powered cameras can read license plates, identify faces, and even issue tickets automatically, with no officer ever reviewing the footage. The conversation starts close to home, on a construction-heavy stretch of I-81 where photo-enforced cameras raised millions of dollars in a matter of weeks. Jonathan has never earned a ticket from one, yet he resents them anyway. His own run-ins with an automated ticketing system, including tickets for a car that wasn't his in a city he wasn't in, show how quickly "innocent until proven guilty" can flip to "guilty until proven innocent." Beyond that, there's a deeper question about what happens to a society that knows it's being watched all the time. We already appear on camera in stores and businesses every day, so why does a camera on a public street, backed by the authority of the state and accessible to many people, feel so different? That leads to the question that started it all: is it a Christian thing to cut down a Flock camera? The hosts work through the biblical pattern of civil disobedience, from the apostles to the civil rights movement, and land on a sobering principle. If you believe a law is unjust enough to break, you also carry the responsibility to accept the full consequences without complaint. They also draw a careful distinction. The apostles and civil rights leaders were acting to advance the gospel and affirm the image of God in people, and it's hard to make that case for vandalizing a camera. Along the way they count the cost to family and calling, and they remember that justice belongs to the Lord. It isn't ours to use for the satisfaction of sticking it to the man. If you're weighing whether to take bold action on something that angers you, the hosts offer a few questions to ask first: Are you willing to pay the full consequences?Have you exhausted every other means?Will it genuinely advance Christ's kingdom?Have you prayed about it? The goal isn't to silence your convictions. It's to submit them to what God says is right, true, and just. We don't have to take the easy road just because something makes us angry. We're called to ask the hard questions. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Watched, Ticketed, and Tempted: What Should Christians Do About Flock Cameras?

  4. Sep 30

    Should We Be Afraid of AI?

    AI can turn a three-hour task into thirty seconds. It can also raise questions that are much bigger than productivity. In this episode, Jonathan and David wrestle with the strange tension surrounding artificial intelligence: the technology is extraordinarily powerful, genuinely useful, and increasingly capable; and yet the people building it are warning us about the dangers of letting it develop faster than our ability to understand and control it. This conversation digs into a much-discussed AI incident and what happens when the dramatic headline is separated from what actually happened. The story raises a larger issue: powerful technologies don't just need safeguards, they need people who have thought carefully about the goals, assumptions, and boundaries surrounding them. Sometimes the greatest danger isn't that technology suddenly becomes evil. It's that human beings fail to think through what they are building and why. That leads to one of the most practical ideas in the episode: you don't have to understand every detail of a tool to use it well, but you do need enough foundational knowledge to recognize when the tool is wrong. Jonathan's financial example illustrates this perfectly. Because he had already done the tedious work of understanding the numbers, he could recognize when AI produced a correct answer—and would also be better equipped to recognize a mistake. From there, the conversation turns toward a distinctly Christian approach to technology. We are not called to fear everything humans create, but neither are we called to embrace every new capability simply because it is possible. We are creators because we are made in the image of God, but we are also fallen people capable of using good things for destructive purposes. That means Christians have a responsibility to ask what a technology enables, what it costs, what it replaces, and whether its use helps us love and serve people well. The goal isn't to reject technology. It's to use it wisely. We don't need to live in fear of the future, but we do need to think carefully about the future we're building. As always, Be Unbound Article Source: https://darioamodei.com/post/we-must-pace-the-frontier Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Should We Be Afraid of AI?

  5. Sep 23

    Progress or Regress?

    Are we winning or losing? In this episode, Jonathan and David reflect on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 and use it as a starting point for a much bigger question: are we winning or losing? As they look at the changes that have happened over the past 25 years, they wrestle with the reality that progress and loss can exist at the same time. Some things have clearly improved, while other things have deteriorated. And when we zoom out far enough, it can be difficult to know exactly how to measure whether we're moving forward. The conversation turns toward 9/11 and the world that existed before and after it. Jonathan and David talk about how dramatically the event changed American life, from air travel and security to political division and the way people relate to one another. They wrestle with the costs and benefits that have followed, recognizing that history doesn't always move in a straight line. Sometimes victories come with losses, and sometimes the world we gain is permanently marked by what we lost along the way. That leads to a deeper Christian perspective on what Jonathan describes as the “long defeat.” We live in a world marked by sin, and Scripture tells us to expect suffering, evil, and persecution. But that isn't the whole story. God is also actively redeeming people, communities, and circumstances in the middle of that brokenness. The early church grew in the midst of a deeply broken world, and even after 9/11, people experienced unexpected community, ministry, and spiritual renewal. Ultimately, the Christian hope isn't that we will be able to look around and prove that everything is getting better. We may live in the middle of the long defeat, but the story doesn't end there. Because God redeems all things, even the things that look like loss. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Progress or Regress?

  6. Sep 16

    Failure Is an Option, But It’s Not an Excuse

    What if failure isn't something you need to avoid at all costs? In this episode, Jonathan and David explore what it really means to say that “failure is an option.” In a culture where failure can feel like the end of the road, they argue that failure is often necessary for growth, learning, and meaningful progress. Trying something new means you may not get it right—and if we're unwilling to fail, we can end up unwilling to try anything that actually matters. But there's an important distinction: failure is an option, but it's not an excuse. Failure isn't something to celebrate simply for its own sake, and it doesn't give us permission to stop caring, put in minimal effort, or blame circumstances when things don't work out. Healthy failure means taking responsibility, asking what happened, learning from the experience, and figuring out what you can do differently next time. The conversation explores this idea through sports, physical training, and everyday life. Whether you're losing a game, pushing your body to its limits, or trying something you've never done before, growth often requires getting close enough to failure that you discover what you're actually capable of. Avoiding failure may keep you comfortable, but it can also keep you from expanding your capacity. The episode ultimately brings failure into a much bigger Christian perspective. We live in a broken world where failure isn't just possible—it's a reality. That includes our own sin and shortcomings. But the Christian story doesn't end with failure. Redemption begins with honestly acknowledging that we have failed, and the gospel gives us something that our failures never can: the assurance that our identity is not ultimately defined by our performance. In Christ, we can confront our failures honestly without allowing them to become the definition of who we are. Ultimately, failure isn't the end of the story. Try the thing. Own what went wrong. Learn from what happened. Get back up and try again. And remember that God can redeem even the places where you've fallen short. Failure may be part of the journey—but for those who belong to Christ, it never has to be the end of the story. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    Failure Is an Option, But It’s Not an Excuse

  7. Sep 2

    How Do You Build Courage?

    What does courage actually look like? In this episode, Jonathan and David explore what courage looks like in everyday life and argue that courage isn't the absence of fear. It's the willingness to do what is right despite fear, discomfort, doubt, laziness, or uncertainty. Courage is accepting responsibility for what God has placed in front of you, even when you know it will cost you something. The conversation begins with a few very different stories of courage, from Jonathan confronting a mysterious intruder in his home (which turns out to be a helium balloon) to David crawling through a muddy obstacle course underneath electrified wires. While the stories are entertaining, they point toward something much deeper: courage grows when we deliberately put ourselves in situations where we have to push through discomfort. The episode also explores the connection between physical hardship and mental fortitude. When we consistently avoid discomfort, we shouldn't be surprised when we're unprepared to face significant challenges. If we want young people to resist temptation and stand firm when life becomes difficult, we have to give them opportunities to practice doing hard things. We can't expect people to suddenly demonstrate extraordinary courage when they've never trained for it. Community plays an important role in that training as well. Courage becomes easier when you're surrounded by people who are willing to do hard things alongside you. Other people can encourage you, challenge you, remind you that you're capable of more, and help you push through moments when you don't feel like you have enough courage on your own. Ultimately, courage isn't something you suddenly discover when the moment arrives. It's something you build ahead of time. Keep doing the hard things. Keep seeking opportunities to grow. Keep building the courage muscle. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips

    How Do You Build Courage?

  8. Aug 26

    Responsibility: Long Care in the Same Direction

    Responsibility is one of those words that seems simple until you actually stop to consider what it means. We often think of responsibility as doing your job, owning your mistakes, taking care of your possessions, or accepting the consequences of your actions. But responsibility goes much deeper than simply making sure you do what you're supposed to do. At its heart, responsibility means being willing to respond—to respond to the people, circumstances, opportunities, and gifts that God has placed in your life. In this episode, Jonathan and David explore what it really means to take responsibility and why accepting responsibility can radically change our relationships with other people. Ultimately, responsibility isn't about controlling everything around you or taking responsibility for things that aren't yours to control. It is about recognizing what God has placed in front of you and responding faithfully. It means caring about other people enough to allow their needs to affect you. It means accepting sacrifice, inconvenience, and even suffering because someone else matters. And it means recognizing that this kind of responsibility flows from the ultimate example of Christ, who took on a debt that wasn't His so that we could be redeemed. Responsibility isn't about having everything under control. It's about faithfully responding to what God has entrusted to you. You may not be able to change the whole world. You may not be able to fix every problem. But you can be faithful with what's in front of you today. And over time, those small acts of faithfulness will shape the kind of person you become—and the kind of impact your life has on the people around you. As always, Be Unbound Learn more about Unbound: https://beunbound.us/ Hosts: Jonathan Brush, David Rethemeyer Producer: Tamma Phillips Assistant Producers: Adonijah Ayele Isabella Blevins Trent Rider

    Responsibility: Long Care in the Same Direction
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Ratings & Reviews

4.7
out of 5
17 Ratings

About

The Be Unbound Podcast teaches young adults and their parents how to ask the right questions, take action, and understand key truths that will enable them to live well, by showcasing conversations with guests who display what it looks like to be extraordinary at the ordinary.

Information

  • Creator
    Be Unbound
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    232
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Be Unbound Podcast

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