TheReuPLive

Stop watching culture without getting a Kingdom lens! Time to REUP on a Kingdom perspective

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"TheReuPLive" speaks to Faith, culture, current events, church conversations, and Kingdom perspective. Stop watching culture without getting a Kingdom lens! Subscribe, ask questions, let us know what you want us to address from a Christian Kingdom Perspective! sseworth.substack.com

3d ago

Dr. Oscar Williams Jr.

Have you ever looked at someone doing what they do well and wondered what it took for them to get there? We see the role they serve in today. We hear the music, see the work, or recognize the title. But there is usually a much longer story behind that introduction. This Tuesday on TheReuPLive, we’re sitting down with Dr. Oscar Williams Jr., associate pastor at The Potter’s House in Dallas, musician, composer, and educator. I want us to get to know Oscar. What was he like growing up? Who helped shape him? When did he begin to understand his purpose? And how has he learned to follow God when the next step wasn’t clear? We’ll also talk about what he is working on now and make room for some laughter. You know we have to get a few fun questions in there. If you are discovering your gifts, navigating a transition, or wondering how your experiences fit together, bring those questions into the conversation. Join me, LaSonya Whitt, and Deon Miller, Bishop, Tuesday, October 27, at 7 PM Central. Watch on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@JAGAPEINC Watch on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/JAGAPEINC Connect with us: https://www.jagape.com What would you like to ask Pastor Oscar? Leave a comment, and share this invitation with someone who could use encouragement for their next step. Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Oct 28

When Loyalty Replaces Discernment: Politics, Pastors and the Sins We Excuse

We had a plan for this week’s episode of TheReuPLive. We were continuing our series, “The Sins We Excuse,” with a conversation about gossip and how easily Christians can disguise it as concern. But sometimes the conversation takes you somewhere you didn’t expect, and that’s exactly what happened. We began discussing the current political climate and the growing influence of church leaders who encourage Christians to support an entire political party rather than evaluate individual candidates. It raised an important question: Should our political loyalty ever cause us to overlook something we would normally consider unacceptable? We discussed the argument that Christians should prioritize a party’s stated values even when they have serious concerns about an individual candidate’s character. But what happens when party loyalty becomes so strong that we stop examining the individuals we’re being encouraged to support? And should the people we trust to provide spiritual guidance be encouraging independent discernment or telling us which political identity we should embrace? Then our conversation turned to another recent controversy. A pastor publicly introduced a second wife to his congregation, describing a relationship that challenged many Christians’ understanding of biblical marriage. The congregation’s response raised questions about how religious communities react when someone in leadership makes a controversial decision. The stories were different, but we found ourselves asking a similar question in both situations: Why are we sometimes willing to defend behavior from people we admire that we would challenge in someone else? We also explored some of the possible motivations behind questionable decisions by religious leaders. Could financial interests play a role? Could unresolved personal experiences influence their judgment? Could the desire for approval, acceptance, or influence affect what they teach and defend? We cannot know another person’s heart simply by watching their behavior. But we can examine their words, their actions, and the messages they communicate. Jesus warned about the difference between outward religious activity and genuinely knowing Him in Matthew 7:21-23. That passage became particularly relevant to our discussion. At what point does defending a pastor, a political movement, or a religious institution become more important to us than actually examining the teachings of Christ? And how do we hold people accountable while still demonstrating grace, humility, and love? What started as a discussion about gossip became a broader examination of Christian discernment, leadership, influence, and the things we sometimes excuse because of who is involved. This episode isn’t about instructing anyone how to vote or demanding agreement on every theological question. It’s about asking whether we are willing to apply the same standards of integrity, honesty, and accountability to everyone, including ourselves. Because if our standards change depending on who is involved, we should probably examine what is driving those standards. Watch the conversation, and then share your perspective. What do you believe is the difference between extending grace to someone and excusing their behavior? Watch TheReuPLive: https://www.youtube.com/@JAGAPEINC Visit J’Agape: https://www.jagape.com #TheReuPLive #TheSinsWeExcuse #ChristianDiscernment #FaithAndPolitics #ChurchAccountability #ChristianLeadership #BiblicalTruth #ChristianPodcast #ChurchCulture #FaithOverPolitics #SpiritualDiscernment #JAgape Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Oct 21

Faith, Marriage, Prayer & Purpose with Katrina Warr-Polk

A conversation with author Katrina Polk about marriage, prayer, faith, and purpose One of the things that stood out to me when I looked at Katrina Polk’s books was how often the language of fighting shows up. Her first digital book is called A Fight Worth Fighting For. Then came Her Battle Cry, with 22 bold and intentional prayers for the woman warrior. And now she has His Battle Cry coming soon, with 22 bold and intentional prayers for the man warrior. That made me want to ask a bigger question: What are we actually fighting for? Because I think sometimes we can get confused about who the enemy really is. We fight our spouse. We fight our family. Men fight women. Women fight men. We fight people online. We fight the people sitting across from us. But scripture reminds us in Ephesians 6:12 that we wrestle not against flesh and blood. That means sometimes the person we’re fighting with is actually the person we’re supposed to be fighting for. That’s where I want this week’s conversation to go. Katrina’s first book, A Fight Worth Fighting For, talks about 15 years of marriage, faith, growth, and learning to become one. I want to know what those years taught her that she didn’t understand when she first said “I do.” What did marriage expose? What did it require her to surrender? What did prayer look like when talking wasn’t enough? And what does it really mean to fight for a marriage without constantly fighting your spouse? Then there is Her Battle Cry. Twenty-two bold and intentional prayers for women. I want to talk about why prayer became important enough for Katrina to turn it into a book. Were these prayers written from victories she had already experienced, or were some of them born while she was still in the middle of the battle? I also want to talk about something I think many people can relate to: What do you do when you pray and the situation doesn’t immediately change? Sometimes prayer changes the circumstance. Sometimes prayer gives us strength to walk through the circumstance. And sometimes I believe prayer starts changing us before anything around us changes. Then we’re going to talk about His Battle Cry. I especially want to hear why Katrina felt men needed their own collection of intentional prayers. Men carry things too. Pressure. Expectations. Fear. Responsibility. Family. Purpose. Failure. Questions about whether we’re doing enough or becoming who God called us to be. And many men have been taught how to carry those things without ever learning how to talk about them. So I think that conversation has the potential to be especially meaningful. We’re going to have some fun too. I don’t want this to feel like an hour-long book report. 😂 We’re going to talk marriage, who’s most likely to apologize first, who really needs the GPS, what “I’m fine” actually means, and whether some situations require you to pray, talk, wait, or just run. But underneath the laughter is a serious question: What are you fighting for in this season? Your marriage? Your children? Your peace? Your faith? Your purpose? Your healing? Your future? And are you fighting the right enemy? That’s the conversation. Join us this Tuesday at 7 PM CST on TheReuPLive as we sit down with author Katrina Polk to talk about A Fight Worth Fighting For, Her Battle Cry, His Battle Cry, and the purpose behind the words. Stop fighting the people you’re supposed to be fighting for. Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Oct 14

GREED WE CALL BLESSING

One of the things I’ve been thinking about as we continue The Sins We Excuse is how easy it is to recognize greed when it looks extreme. We can see greed when somebody has millions and still wants more. But what about when it looks like something we pray for? Increase. Promotion. A bigger house. A better lifestyle. Financial freedom. Generational wealth. None of those things are necessarily wrong. I believe God can bless us materially. I believe we should build. I believe we should leave something for our children when we can. I believe Christians should be excellent in business, leadership, creativity, and anything else God calls us to. But I also believe we need to ask: How much is enough? Because if I can’t answer that question, the finish line can keep moving every time I get close. I can pray for a house and then become dissatisfied when somebody else has a bigger one. I can pray for financial increase and then increase my lifestyle so quickly that I still feel like I don’t have enough. I can receive the thing I said would make me grateful and immediately start focusing on the next thing. And somewhere in there, what I call blessing can become something else. Jesus said in Luke 12: “A man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” That challenges me. Because our culture tells us constantly that what we own says something about who we are. But Jesus seems to be telling us that life is bigger than accumulation. So this week I’m not asking whether money is bad. It isn’t. I’m asking: What relationship do I have with it? Does money serve my purpose? Or has maintaining money, possessions, status, and lifestyle become the purpose? Can I enjoy what God places in my hand without allowing it to take God’s place in my heart? Can I celebrate somebody else’s success without feeling like their blessing somehow diminished mine? Does my generosity grow when my income grows? Or does only my lifestyle grow? Paul says: “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” That is very different from how we usually define gain. Maybe contentment isn’t a lack of ambition. Maybe contentment is being able to pursue tomorrow without despising what God has given me today. And maybe the real test of blessing isn’t simply how much comes to me. Maybe part of the test is what can flow through me. This week we’re asking: BLESSING OR GREED? And perhaps the most uncomfortable question: If God never gave me another material thing, would I still believe He has been good to me? That’s where I want the conversation to go. Not guilt. Not condemnation. Just examination. Search me, O God, and know my heart. Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Oct 7

Meet the Cast of The Hell with My Family |

Tomorrow night we’re taking a short break from our current series for a special conversation I believe will be both meaningful and relatable. We’ll be joined by guests connected to the upcoming stage play The Hell with My Family. What stood out to me about this opportunity is that stories centered around family tend to hit close to home for almost all of us. Family can be a place of love, identity, support, and covering, but it can also be a place of tension, misunderstanding, pressure, hurt, and challenge. That makes conversations like this important, because art and storytelling often help bring real-life emotions to the surface in ways normal conversation sometimes cannot. Tomorrow’s show will give us an opportunity to talk with cast members and creative voices behind the production about the message of the play, the purpose behind it, and some of the challenges they have overcome in bringing it to life. I also want to hear how this project has stretched them personally and creatively, and what they hope audiences walk away with after experiencing it. This should be a good conversation about purpose, perseverance, creativity, and the power of telling stories that connect with real life. If you are in the Dallas area and enjoy live theater, or you simply appreciate hearing the heart behind meaningful creative work, I think you’ll enjoy this conversation. Production info: The Hell with My FamilySaturday, October 24, 20261:00 PM Matinee & 6:00 PM Evening PerformanceKalita Humphreys Theater3636 Turtle Creek BlvdDallas, TX 75204 Tickets & more info:www.mypurplerose08.comCall Tina @ (682) 500-6747 Join us tomorrow on TheReuPLive. #TheReuPLive #TheHellWithMyFamily #DallasTheater #StagePlay #CastInterview #DirectorInterview #CreativePurpose #PerformingArts #FamilyDrama #FaithAndCulture #LiveInterview #DallasEvents Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Sep 30

Pride We Call Conviction

There is something I have been thinking about as we move into the second conversation in The Sins We Excuse. Most people don’t walk around saying: “I’m prideful.” Pride usually has a better explanation. “I know what I believe.” “I’m standing on truth.” “I don’t compromise.” “I know what the Bible says.” “Somebody has to tell them.” And sometimes every one of those statements can be completely true. But sometimes they can also become a place for pride to hide. That is why this week’s conversation is: Pride We Call Conviction I want to be clear about something. I believe Christians should have convictions. We should study the Word. We should know what we believe. We should not change what we believe simply because something becomes unpopular. But I also believe we have to ask ourselves: What is my conviction producing in me? Is it producing humility? Love? Patience? A deeper submission to God? A desire to restore people? Or has knowing what I believe made me harder to correct, quicker to judge, more comfortable comparing myself to someone else, and more interested in winning than restoring? Luke 18 gives us a powerful example. Jesus tells the story of a Pharisee and a tax collector. The Pharisee was doing a lot of things that looked right. He fasted. He gave. He avoided certain behavior. But then he prayed: “God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are...” That is where something changed. His obedience became comparison. His conviction became superiority. And someone else’s brokenness became evidence of his own righteousness. That is dangerous. Because sometimes we can be completely right about what somebody else is doing and still miss what God is trying to show us about ourselves. One of the things I want us to talk about is this: Conviction starts with a mirror. Pride starts with binoculars. When I hear a message, who do I think needs it first? When I read scripture, am I asking God to search me? Or am I collecting verses for everybody else? There is another scripture that really challenges me. 1 Corinthians 8:1 says, “Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.” Knowledge matters. Studying scripture matters. Doctrine matters. But what happens when all of that knowledge doesn’t make us more loving? What happens when the more Bible I know, the less patient I become with people who don’t know what I know? What happens when knowing the truth makes me feel superior instead of responsible? That is where I believe we need a heart check. Because being correct doesn’t automatically mean I am carrying truth correctly. I can have the right scripture and the wrong motive. The right doctrine and the wrong tone. The right correction and the wrong timing. The right information and the wrong spirit. And if we are honest, sometimes pride becomes clearest when somebody challenges us. Can somebody tell me I am wrong? Can somebody ask me to reconsider? Can I say: “I believe this strongly, but if I am missing something, show me”? That is not weakness. That is humility. The other question I want us to wrestle with is the goal of correction. When I confront someone, what do I actually want? Do I want them restored? Do I want them closer to God? Do I want them free? Or do I need them to admit that I was right? Here is a question I have been sitting with: If they changed, healed, and became closer to God, but never acknowledged that I was right, would I still be satisfied? If not, maybe this was never completely about restoration. Maybe some pride was mixed in. That is what this series is about. Not throwing away good things like conviction. Not becoming afraid to speak truth. Not pretending doctrine doesn’t matter. It is about asking God to reveal what may have become attached to those things in our hearts. Our prayer over this entire series is still: “Search me, O God, and know my heart.” So this week I am not asking: “Who do I know that is prideful?” I’m asking: Where has pride learned how to sound like conviction in me? Because we need truth. We need conviction. We need Christians willing to stand. But we should never have to make somebody else small in order for God’s truth to remain big. You can stand firm without standing above people. Join us on TheReuPLive as we continue The Sins We Excuse with: Pride We Call Conviction When Being Right Becomes More Important Than Being Righteous Tuesday | 7 PM CST #TheReuPLive #TheSinsWeExcuse #PrideWeCallConviction #SpiritualPride #ChristianGrowth #BiblicalTruth #ChristianPodcast #FaithAndCulture Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Sep 23

Unforgiveness We Call Boundaries

There is a phrase I hear a lot today: “I’m protecting my peace.” And sometimes that is exactly what needs to happen. There are relationships that require boundaries. There are people who should not have the same access to us they once had. There are situations where trust has been broken and wisdom says things cannot simply return to how they were before. I believe that. But I have also been thinking about something else. Can healthy language sometimes become a hiding place for an unhealthy heart? Can I call something a boundary when what I’m really protecting is resentment? Can I say I’ve forgiven somebody while still hoping they suffer? Can I remove somebody from my life and still allow what they did to occupy my thoughts every day? Can I say, “They don’t have access to me anymore,” while still giving the offense access to my heart? That is where we are beginning our new TheReuPLive series: The Sins We Excuse Over the next several weeks, we are going to examine some things Christians sometimes give better names because the better name makes them easier to keep. And we are starting with: Unforgiveness We Call Boundaries This conversation is not about removing boundaries. It is about understanding the difference between: forgiveness and access forgiveness and trust forgiveness and reconciliation forgiveness and accountability Because those things are not all the same. I can forgive you and still recognize that trust needs to be rebuilt. I can release revenge and still hold you accountable. I can forgive and still decide that wisdom requires distance. And I can forgive even when reconciliation is impossible because the other person refuses to participate. The question is what is happening inside me. Ephesians 4 tells us to put away bitterness, wrath, anger, and evil speaking and to forgive one another. Hebrews warns us about a root of bitterness. That image really gets me because roots grow underground long before anybody sees what they are producing. And sometimes an old wound starts producing fruit in relationships with people who never caused the original injury. So this week I want us to ask ourselves something uncomfortable: Is this really a boundary, or is this unforgiveness wearing healthier language? I’m not asking you to give unsafe people access to you. I’m not telling you to pretend what happened didn’t matter. And I’m definitely not telling you that forgiveness means there should never be consequences. I’m asking something much more personal: Do I want what they did to continue controlling what happens inside me? Because someone can leave your life and still occupy your heart. You can block their number and remain emotionally connected to the offense. You can stop speaking to them and still have conversations with them in your head every day. And eventually, freedom may require something that distance alone cannot provide. Forgiveness. This is where I keep landing: Forgiveness releases the debt. Trust determines access. Reconciliation requires participation. Those distinctions matter. Join us for the first conversation in The Sins We Excuse as we talk honestly about hurt, bitterness, boundaries, accountability, reconciliation, and what real forgiveness looks like. And before we start pointing toward someone else, our prayer for this entire series is: “Search me, O God, and know my heart.” #TheReuPLive #TheSinsWeExcuse #Unforgiveness #Forgiveness #BoundaryOrBitterness #HealthyBoundaries #ChristianBoundaries #ChristianHealing #Bitterness #ChristianPodcast #FaithAndCulture #SpiritualGrowth #ChristianRelationships This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe
Sep 16

UNITY WILL COST YOU

Everybody says they want Christian unity. But what happens when unity requires something from us? This week, TheReuPLive continues Different, Not Divided with: UNITY WILL COST YOU SOMETHING What Biblical Unity Actually Requires Biblical unity is not simply agreeing that division is bad. Unity requires humility. Forgiveness. Patience. Sacrifice. Sharing influence. Letting go of preferences. And sometimes making the first move even when we believe someone else should. In this episode, we’re discussing: • why unity costs pride• the difference between biblical truth and personal preference• how control prevents genuine collaboration• why forgiveness and restored trust are not identical• how political, denominational and cultural loyalty can compete with our identity in Christ• what Jesus’ humility teaches us about unity• why unity does not require compromising biblical truth• practical steps toward reconciliation Featured Scriptures Philippians 2:1–8Ephesians 4:1–3Colossians 3:12–15John 17:20–23Ephesians 4:15 Ask yourself: What has unity ever cost me? And perhaps the harder question: What is God asking me to lay down now? Join TheReuPLive Every Tuesday at 7 PM CST. #TheReuPLive #DifferentNotDivided #ChristianUnity #BodyOfChrist #ChurchUnity #ChristianPodcast #Forgiveness #Humility #Christianity #FaithAndCulture Get full access to Shelton Seworth at sseworth.substack.com/subscribe

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Creator

Stop watching culture without getting a Kingdom lens! Time to REUP on a Kingdom perspective
Years Active

2013 - 2026
Episodes

33
Rating

Explicit
Show Website

TheReuPLive

TheReuPLive

Dr. Oscar Williams Jr.

When Loyalty Replaces Discernment: Politics, Pastors and the Sins We Excuse

Faith, Marriage, Prayer & Purpose with Katrina Warr-Polk

GREED WE CALL BLESSING

Meet the Cast of The Hell with My Family |

Pride We Call Conviction

Unforgiveness We Call Boundaries

UNITY WILL COST YOU

About

Information

TheReuPLive

Episodes

Dr. Oscar Williams Jr.

When Loyalty Replaces Discernment: Politics, Pastors and the Sins We Excuse

Faith, Marriage, Prayer & Purpose with Katrina Warr-Polk

GREED WE CALL BLESSING

Meet the Cast of The Hell with My Family |

Pride We Call Conviction

Unforgiveness We Call Boundaries

UNITY WILL COST YOU

About

Information