Church as a Public Library (with Beau Stringer) | Ep. 70
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[00:00:00] Well, friends, my new book has been out for just over a week now. It's called The Edge of the Inside. The subtitle is When Losing Your Place Means Finding Your Soul. It's a story about my journey out of full-time ministry and how I've learned to see God differently, how I've learned to see the church differently.
How I've learned to make sense of all of it differently when you move your position from the center of Christianity to the edges. And what has been so cool already about a week in, is how many other people are relating to this message. So if that sounds like you, sounds like your journey, I want to encourage you to check the book out.
It is now available. You can go to edge of the inside.com and check it out for yourself.
Welcome to another episode of Cabernet and Pray. Where we sip the wine and we stir the faith. And today we've got Bo Stringer on our episode. Bo is the Director of Adult [00:01:00] Discipleship at Resurrection Downtown. A location of the largest mainland church in the country. He's the creator of Becoming Mainline, which is a Substack publication with over 4,000 subscribers and explores progressive Christianity and Faith transitions.
He's the author of the forthcoming book, A Different Kind of Christian, A Guide to Faith, scripture and Church After Evangelicalism. He's passionate, advocate for mainline churches. Jesus centered ministry, enemy love, nonviolence, and supporting marginalized community. This is another guy that is so similar just in my story.
He used to be a lead pastor. He has done all sorts of transitions in his own church experience, and it's still working to figure out how does he remain faithful. To Jesus in this season in new ways that look very different than ways in the past. So this is church as a public [00:02:00] library.
I've never shared this with anybody publicly. If this was SportsCenter, that would be like such a hot take. Skip Bayless would've no idea. Stephen A. Smith would've no idea what to say if you drop that down. That is so good. The joke I always say is like, how'd you learn so much? Gotta drink a lot. The power of food and beverage to lubricate an environment.
Resistance to change is hurting the church. I'm not in the camp that God has a penis or a vagina or a body at all. I'm in the camp that God is at Universal Spirit. This is the strangest podcast that I've been on. I don't even know what to do. I'm kind of geeked up about this wine. This is my second glass, and it delivers a little more of a punch than I expected.
How if I get a little loopy. It's your follow up. You told me to drink it. I just show up. I'll also say, as a confession, I am a lightweight, so I've had like three sips of this wine and I'm already feeling it, so this is fun. You've uncovered the mystery, [00:03:00] you've exposed the formula. You've just duct taped together a number of things that aren't normally hanging out together, and I'm here for it.
We're gonna sit down a table, we're gonna have a glass of wine and some food, and we're gonna talk about the beauty of Jesus. Thanks for what you're doing with this podcast and for the creative way You're doing it in the. Beautiful positive spirit in which you're doing it. I really appreciate this venue, what you're doing.
It is fun, and yet you dig into the deep stuff. I've heard about your podcast for a long time, and I love that you're a pastor and that you explore the world of faith through wine that. Very unique. I never thought of church history in terms of wine drinkers. I love this question. Really got my mind rolling.
You had me with herbaceous notes. I want you to know I'm ready to just stay here and live in the wine tour. I will never forget the first time I bought a bottle of wine. By myself, which was yesterday. If you're familiar with Drunk History, I thought it's like drunk [00:04:00] theology, so I, oh, I got a little spicy there.
It's the peach wine. Apparently the wine is, here we are. Here we are. Beer, we are, no, it's wine. Jeremy, by the way, drinking this peanut regio at three o'clock in the afternoon is making me even more direct in my communication than I normally would be. I know why you have your guest drink wine. It makes sense now.
Yeah, I get it. A little bit of liquid courage should really unleash the beast. I think you've got a good podcast throwing the wine bit in there. That's nice, doesn't it? Cabernet and Prey. Yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Well, he is gone from Southern Baptist to United Methodist, and he's stoked about it. Welcome to the podcast, Bo.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Hey, thanks. Thanks for having me. that's, that's a great intro. I love that.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I wanna just give a little, little teaser there, right of the flavor of you've, you've, you've experienced quite a few things.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Yeah. And to be honest, like I want to be the biggest champion of mainline churches, so I'm, that's what I'm about. You [00:05:00] nailed it.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Well, there we go. We're gonna get into it. Before we do, we're gonna talk about our beverages. Today I am drinking a 2023 Pinot Noir from Soel Blosser, which is a wonderful place in Oregon that I am a member of. This is, their Croft Vineyard, Pinot Noir and light like you'd expect with a pinot. I'm getting some like cherry notes, cranberry notes, a little tartness to it, which is fun.
You know the weather's a little warm in Arizona and little tart notes, so I'm enjoying that. That's what I've got. What do you got in your glass today?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: This is, uh, Pinot Grigio, and I'm not sure what I'm tasting in it other than it's boxed wine. So I might be opposite end of the spectrum from where you're at today.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: it's It's Okay.
We,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: refreshing.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: there we go.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: refreshing.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: We are, we are supporters of wine drinking on all ends of the spectrum. We want people to drink wine and enjoy wine. So if BOA Box is your go-to, [00:06:00] go for it. You know, I, uh, I used to have that as well. The problem, this is, this is not to sound hoity-toity, this is real life Wine has a way of ruining you if you drink the really nice stuff.
And it's different than other liquors. Like, I can have a cheap beer and I can have cheap you know, whiskey or whatever, and I'm fine. Like it's not a big deal. I can't do cheap wine. because like, you get used to something. And so, you know, someone, like, I remember the first time I used to order wine on the airplane, like I thought it was awesome.
And then it started getting into nicer wines. They offered me an airplane wine and I was like, Yeah. sure. And I'm like, oh, this is terrible. I can't, I can't even drink this. And so now I have the, like I'll take the cheapest beer you have. That's fine. But yeah,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: You
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: so Bota box, if you can, if you can rock it and it's good.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Well, I, I guess I've never had like, good wine, so I'm gonna stick with where I'm
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: There you go.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: broke
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: It's cheaper that way.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: wine is like, you know, we enjoy it. But I mean, I'm glad you said that. We used to drink cheap beer, like, like [00:07:00] crazy in our house and 20, yeah, 20, 22 we went like straight, just, just wine in our house, um, for a variety of reasons.
But yeah, so that's all we drink now, at least far as liquor. And we drink a lot of water, drink a lot of wine.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Just, just wine. wine and everything. Wine in our cereal. That'd be amazing. Okay, so I I, you just dropped that nugget. I think people are gonna be intrigued by what does it, what does it mean to go wine only.
What, what, what can you share about that?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Well, so at the time we were in Texas, and I'm a big country music fan. There's just like this culture, this vibe of beer drinking, you know, all my friends, I play a lot of golf too. And so just drink a lot of beer. Beer. And my wife developed a, uh, a taste for beer as well. And so we would just blow through like Miller Light.
not good, not healthy. [00:08:00] A lot of extra calories. same time, I also enjoyed like, IPAs, like just beer across the board. I used to say, if it's got beer in the title, I'll drink it. You know, like similar to what you've said, like if it's beer, like I'm, I'm, I'm in. Um, but it started messing with my stomach, so I don't know, don't know why.
Uh, just like stomach issues. And so I found that wine didn't do that. So I just told my wife, I'm like, we're done with beer. Like all the calories and the stomach issues, you know, went away. Not com, the calories. Not completely, but you know, better for
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I'm convinced this is the definition of getting older, is when you start making these traits, when you're like, I don't feel good when I eat that, uh, I, you.
know, like you start thinking about things from a totally different point of view when you're young, it's like, does it taste good? Like, that's literally all there is, right?
And then you get to a point where you're like, it tastes good, but I don't feel good. Uh, and that's, Yeah. We'll, we'll, we'll call That, maturity Bo, how about that
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: appreciate that. Yeah. [00:09:00] That may be right.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: So you have, you have matured in, in your, in your drinking. I like it. All right. A question I'd like to start with so that our listeners can get a frame of reference for you for a little bit of your story. A, as you look at the last 10 years of your life, you have some similarities to, to me. What would you say has been the shift in your faith?
How has your faith changed in the last 10 years?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Oh my gosh. Um, everything, no, uh, I mean, truly the biggest ones have been, um, you know, really how you view scripture. That's probably the foundation, if I'm gonna say, like, that's the biggest, biggest change that has led to other changes. But for me, I really started wrestling with, um, the violence we see with God in the Old Testament compared to like, enemy love in the New Testament.
That was the issue for me, for d for, you know, other people, it's, it's different things, but for me, know, really falling in love with the beatitudes and like the words of Jesus. And [00:10:00] then you see this posture that's so like stark different than Old Testament. God, that sent me down a, a massive like journey you know, reading scripture and, you know, I know mutual friend Brian Zan, you know, I read a lot of his work and, um, you know, that really, that was probably about 10 years ago.
know, I really started wrestling with how we read scripture and Pete Ins played a huge, obviously a huge role in that for me. And, you know, there's so many just brilliant thinkers out there that have helped me on that journey. But felt like, you know, you pull that thread, you begin to like, question and errand see, and things like that, sweater started to unravel, you know, and that's led to, to other things like social issues and becoming affirming and, you know, things like that.
So I would say that's the, that's the big one. Yep.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah, that is a big one. And it's, it's so much shaped by how you grow up, right? [00:11:00] Because a lot of us, if you grew up in a church setting in a Christian home, uh, you were told certain things about the Bible, which then, like you said, that shapes every other conclusion you come to because this is how you read it and this is what it clearly says, right?
According to those who have taught me how to read it. And when you start to unravel that, and you know what, what continues to amaze me to this day is that I, I pick on numbers 31 a lot because That's my least favorite chapter in the Bible. And I like to dunk on it. 'cause I think it's a horrific chapter.
And every time I do, I will have someone defend it and no, God can look like this and God, you know, is fine getting virgins as spoils of war and you know, all these things. And I'm just like. Okay, so what, the things that to me are just like, okay, this is obviously not, this doesn't look like Jesus, so we have to figure something out.
You know, and there's just, there's people that have no problem with it, but I, I, I do resonate with what you're saying when you change that one piece and you're like, Hey, I think I'm gonna read this differently. [00:12:00] And then what I have found is like, that doesn't even stop as you study it more and more and more, and it continues, you, you continue to see it in new ways and understand it and go, what was, what was the actual intent of this?
And, you know, I I, I love all the geeky stuff. I love the geeky books. I love all the scholars that are like, you know, showing me things that, like, unless you know all these ancient languages with a PhD, like, you would never know what they're saying, you know? But like, I listen to them like, okay, what, what have you found? right.
And then they'll drop things on you. They're like, well that's an interesting detail that I've never heard before. And yet most Christians are like, nah, I'm good. Just read it for what it says. You know? It's like, okay.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. It's like this 180 in my life has happened where like I used to be. And when you're raised in that world, I used to be terrified of people who like asked questions and, you know, express some kind of doubt or were curious. Like, I was terrified of those people. Like, you know, now, like I'm more scared of people who don't [00:13:00] ask questions and aren't curious, you know, as far as Christians go, like I'm, I'm terrified of those Christians that are just like, I've got it all figured out and, you know, I don't, I don't have any curiosity about this, this book that is like so complex and collection of books that's so complex, you know?
That's, that's a great point. And for me, like the, especially the violence thing, uh, you know, there's really only a few conclusions, right? Like God changed. Like, I don't like that. that at all. You know, like just me personally. Some people I guess are fine with that, you know, or like we're figuring out, you know, God through history and time, like progressive revelation.
Like I'm, I'm more open to that. But like the end of the day, like I had no problem just saying like, I think the writers in the Old Testament got it wrong. You know, I think they blamed God
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Woo.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: of stuff that they wanted to do, you know, and that would've got me, you know, quickly removed from positions of leadership in the past.
But, I, I get to say that now and, and with my full chest and, and no problem. [00:14:00] So.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah. That's not, a, that's not a speaking point of the Southern Baptist, uh, tradition.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: You're right. Yeah. Well, what's interesting, if you don't mind me sharing real quick, what, what's interesting about like, my Southern Baptist journey, it's a little different than, than other people. Um, the very first church I got hired in was a Southern Baptist church, a little tiny west Texas town.
And the pastor, his name was Anthony Sizemore, and you can Google his name, um, S-I-Z-E-M-O-R-E, Sizemore. And he challenged, he went to the, uh, Southern Baptist Convention and challenged the very first line of the Baptist faith and message, says like, uh, scripture is the direct revelation of who God is.
And, uh, he challenged to say, Jesus is the direct revelation of who God is. So the guy that hired me and I was like 20 years old to work in a Southern Baptist church, was like considered a moderate, you know? And so like, I, I was like, when I entered into ministry, well, lemme back up. The reason he did that was 'cause his daughter came to him and said that she wanted to be a pastor.
And so he, like the guy who hired me in a Southern Baptist church, first of all, was like [00:15:00] centering Jesus. Second of all, was questioning and like challenging it due to the fact like he wanted to affirm women in ministry, which is like unheard of in the Southern Baptist world. So I was hired by like this progressive guy, you know?
So, um, it is pretty cool though to think like I started in the Southern Baptist Church underneath some, some teaching and like leadership of a guy who was already affirming women. So I've never been in ministry, a ministry setting where like I didn't fully champion women even in the Southern Baptist world, which is, it's pretty unique,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That, that is pretty unique if you, if you know the Southern Baptist tradition and culture and what often goes with that.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, totally. But where I'm at now, you know, it's not really, not that far of a jump, you know, I mean, I guess it is, but, um, but considering where I started in the Southern Baptist world, it was, I was already kinda labeled a, a crazy person, but.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: One of the things I love, and a lot of the listeners of this show, and a lot of the, the guests that we have, have, have journeys, right, of like, I started here and then I went to here, then I went to here, and [00:16:00] here's where I am right now. And you know, that's why I love that opening question of. Tell us the latest journey, right?
Because we're, I think we're all, if you're growing at least you're, you're on a journey and that often involves changing your mind and saying, Hey, I used to see it like this, and now I see it like this. And Yeah. What I think is beautiful is that none of those previous versions of ourselves are wasted.
You know? They, they are part of the, the analogy I use is part of the compost that has made us who we are. Like we, we take all of that and we grow from that. And so even the Southern Baptist version of you, you can look back now and go, oh Yeah.
there were like glimmers of things that were emerging there in that space that has made you who you are.
And
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: That's
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: an encouragement for listeners of like, Hey, if you look back and you're like, I cannot believe I was this or that, or I believe that, uh, there are some cringey moments, but God will use that to bring you on the journey and then you can become a united Methodist, like Bo.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, that's right. That's right. Yep.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Alright, you have a line that. [00:17:00] I love and I think will deeply resonate with a lot of people who are listening to this. You say this, I know what it costs. To walk away from a tradition that raised you, the community, the certainty, the sense that you know how the story ends. I'm not romantic about deconstruction.
It's grief, but sometimes grief is the most faithful thing you can do. Unpack that for us.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. So, you know, when I say I'm not romantic about deconstruction, I think there's a little bit in our culture this, it's like kind of the cool thing, like, or it's kind of like the, the thing that's in right now. But I think what I want to highlight and what I'm deeply passionate about is like I'm still in so many relationships with people that hold that old faith that I have.
And I am like, I want to, to talk about deconstruction in a way that is like real and honest and like that [00:18:00] is really hard for me still. I have not figured that piece out. I have not, um, I'm still working through what it looks like to stay in a relationship with people that whole different. Viewpoints of me, not just politically or like, but even on a, like a fundamental spiritual like faith level.
There are people that I deeply admire and deeply respect that shaped me. And part of my story is like, I had an amazing experience in church growing up. You know, like I, I, I found so much joy in like youth group and my youth leaders, and I still like, admire and respect so many people that, that taught me to love Jesus and taught me to love the scriptures.
yet now, like I adamantly disagree with so much of that theology, and I still love these people. Um, know, I, I draw some pretty hard lines, you know, and like things I won't tolerate and, you know, I, I'm trying to navigate that. But with that just comes an enormous amount of grief for me, because I feel like those relationships [00:19:00] are strained.
Sometimes and even like close relationships, um, you know, I don't think he'd have a problem saying this, but like me saying this, but like my, my father-in-law, we don't see eye to eye, um, hardly on anything. He was a Southern Baptist pastor by the way, or Yeah. Was, um, and you know, so my wife is a PK and I think he just still deeply holds to a lot of the beliefs.
And I love him, I respect him. We have a great relationship and you know, but with that it just comes, there's just a grief to it. And that's what I mean. And, and I think along with my shift in and shift and like my spiritual journey has also come a more healthy theology when it comes to grief, when it comes to suffering and just naming it for what it is and not always having an answer for it.
Whereas, like I would say in my kinda like evangelical world and, you know, pastoring in that space, I always had an answer. For suffering. I always had an answer for, [00:20:00] you know, the things that were going on in people's lives that might be challenging. You know, those stupid like cliches about, um, you know, this was part of God's plan, or God's gonna use this for his glory and his good.
And you know what, like now, like I love, I'm in a, I'm in a tradition that really holds just like that. I don't know, I can't say, and I don't have an answer, but I'm just gonna show up and I'm just gonna be present with you and that's enough. And I'm sorry I don't have the right words, but, you know, like, um, I think God is with you in it, but I don't know why it's happening.
to me like that is, that's kind of what I mean when I, share that. So it's kind of a long answer, but it's really the heart of it, so.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Oh, that's good. And, and, you know, part of your journey, you, you are also a lead pastor
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yep.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: an evangelical space. You, you are not currently a lead pastor
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: No.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: in an evangelical space. What, what was the, I mean, share whatever you feel comfortable with. What, what was the reason you're like, this has gotta change, [00:21:00] or, I, I can't keep doing this.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Um, you know, I jumped out of ministry in 2022. Um. My mother-in-law had grown ill, and we felt like we needed to go care for her. And so we did. We moved back to Texas from North Iowa, and we spent a season caring for her. In the last 18 months of her life, I jumped out of ministry, strictly financial reasons, to be honest.
Um, I got a job that paid significantly better than what I had ever made in my life, and that allowed my wife to, just kind of spend full time caring for her mom. And, um, so, uh, jumped outta ministry. But in that season, there was about 18 months in, uh, in, in Texas, back in Texas and, and we're from Amarillo, which is a, it's a fairly good sized city.
People don't realize it's 200,000 people. So it's, it's a pretty good size. But, um, come to find out, there was like virtually no affirming churches [00:22:00] there. Um, like fully affirming, I'm talking about like lgbtq plus affirming. Um, and never found a place where we could worship, like authentically and our full selves.
No, I had made that jump when I was pastoring, and I always like. Privately held that position, but publicly, you know, always like gave the, you know, the position of the church publicly. But privately I had like come to the conclusion that I was like, you know, fully affirming. And so I wanted so desperately to worship in a place where I could like fully like be my authentic self and, and express that and be surrounded by people that, um, shared that view.
And I hadn't had that in my life really up to that point. so we couldn't find a place to worship. And, um, I wasn't sure if I'd ever do ministry again to be, to be honest. 'cause I had gone on this journey and I'm like, I don't know what it looks like for me, you know, Southern Baptist Nondenom. Like, how am I ever gonna find a place that you know works and give a chance on like me, you know?
And I just honestly didn't think it was in the cards. But, you know, I [00:23:00] did my mother-in-law's funeral in April of 2024. a wedding of, uh. Just a really long time friend who, who babysat our kids growing up and she got married and so I did her wedding in June of 2024 and that was back up in Iowa. And so we were driving from Iowa to Texas and we stopped in Kansas City.
At a church called Resurrection, we worshiped there and it was an extremely emotional experience. So resurrection's the church I work at now, but um, it was a United Methodist church, but I had this emotional, emotional experience in worship and it was because I felt like I could worship in a place where like it was fully in alignment.
With where I was at. And that was special. Like, that was, it was very emotional, very special for me. the way home from Kansas City back to, to Amarillo, um, I began thinking like, man, what would it look like to, to work there? And like, what would, you know? me, my ministry's always been marked by like, evangelism.
I have a huge heart for like unchurched de-churched, like, like [00:24:00] sharing the hope of Jesus with people. And resurrection's mission statement is to become a Christian community where non and nominally religious people are becoming deeply committed Christians. So they have this huge heart. So there's this, I look, I watch, I walk out in the lobby and there's this huge sign that says like that mission statement of non anomaly religious people.
And I'm just like, whoa. Like, okay, there's a Methodist church that has like a heart for evangelism and is growing and is like. Really, really cool. And so yeah, the whole drive back, I was like, man, I wonder, I wonder, wonder. So I ended up applying and it worked out. And you know, like I, you mentioned, I'm not a lead pastor anymore, but now I'm serving on a team of this, you know, like I never dreamed I'd work at a church this big.
But we have nine locations across Kansas City and it's awesome. But you know, I'm on a team where I can kind of focus on discipleship efforts. So I'm our adult discipleship director at our downtown location here in Kansas City. And uh, it is beautiful. It's diverse. I'm in the heart of the city, we're downtown.
It's so fun. And I just get to like, I lead classes and small groups and studies and I don't get to be in [00:25:00] charge. And I love that. Um, I can just kind of stay in my lane. And there was a lot that happened at the end of my, uh, lead pastor tenure that made things really hard. So I was grieving in that, in that season too, like, just, just from being in a ministry and being burned out and, you know, being the senior leader.
And so now I just get to kind of walk with people and. Disciple people and, and just kind of do my thing. And, so anyway, that's kind of how I ended up I am now.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That's crazy that you drove through
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: had that experience and there you are.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: I, had a mutual friend that, um, you know, lived in Kansas City, invited us to, to church, but it was really special.
Yeah. But I just thought I'd throw my name out there. Like they had some openings online and I, I played for, I applied for like a, a director of operations position. Like I just wanted to be a part of it. Like, it was just so, so special. And then I applied for the, the job I got. But, interviewed and gosh, it was like really, really fast.
We sold our house in Texas in two weeks and moved to Kansas City like two days [00:26:00] before school started for my kids. And, boy, we have just like fallen in love with Kansas City. Yeah. We love being here. And I love this place, I love this church. It's a lot of fun. So I
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That's amazing.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Okay. Quick question on something you said. I'm curious, your take on this, how many pastors do you think have differing views than what their church is, but they don't. They don't share it.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Oh my gosh. Okay. This, glad you asked this question. I think it's a lot,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Hmm.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: something that I don't think is talked about enough and we need to show a little more grace for is, I think there are a lot of pastors that hold different views, but honestly, like they are providing for their family, and it is not worth the cost of like disrupting the financial and the, like, the, like the framework of their home.
I don't know how else to say that. Maybe help there. You know what I'm saying though?
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: I, think that is a big factor that's not talked about enough. I bet you it's a lot.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: [00:27:00] So what I found, and I'm curious if this was any of your experience when I left that role, I, within the next year. Like officially changed my mind on a bunch of things and it surprised me, like, wow, now I'm here. You know, like affirming being one of them, like, oh Yeah.
I'm fully affirming. And what I realized as I reflected on my own experience, I don't think for me it was, Hey, I gotta, I gotta pay the bills and take care of my family.
I think for me, the role itself limited the amount of imagination I would even explore, because I knew if I get too far out from where this community is, I'm going to be in relational. I, I have a relational issue, right? Where now I'm championing, you know, this community, and if I get that far away, I will no longer be able to offer something.
So it's almost like I didn't let my mind fully go there. And then once that piece was removed for me, it was like, oh Yeah.
well. Obviously I'm [00:28:00] there, you know what I mean? Like it became like this thing, but it was like, what's different? And the what is different is I don't feel the responsibility to try to bring this whole community with me anymore.
And now it's like, no, it's just like I tell people all the time, it's like, No, these are just my views. Like I'm not speaking on behalf of thousands of people. It's it, these are my views and it's, it's much easier to say, I've changed my mind on something than it is our entire community is going to practice this.
You know what I mean? Like that's a gigantic difference.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, and it was a little different for me, and this is one of the things I'm most proud of, a, and I'm still in a space where it's this, this way, but like our church was extremely diverse. I would say like almost half of our church was probably already affirming, you know?
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Oh yeah.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: wasn't
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I did not have that.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: trying to like get like all this group of people to align with me.
It was more, again, it was more like our leadership team wasn't there, or like, it was like the actual bylaws, the actual like statement of faith did not articulate some of the things that I believed and therefore, like, [00:29:00] you know, I think sort of fundamental level, I'd probably lose my job, you know, just, just because I, I'm going against what is like the stated.
Kind of beliefs, but, uh, that makes total sense too. And I, you know, obviously there, that would've been some of it, you know, there would've been some people, you know, relationally that would, that would've, you know, hurt and been hard. So
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: But I, I, I talk to a lot of pastors, current pastors who, you know, will like say like, oh, I listen to your podcast. It's kind of like my guilty pleasure of like,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Uh
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I get to like lower my guard and entertain these ideas and have this space and be free. Where I know in my professional role I can't, I can't publicly have these conversations or I can't publicly say some of these things.
And I do think there's all sorts of tension. So I appreciate your. Your insight into what have you seen, and I just think the typical person doesn't realize probably how much that goes on, which is a really complicated dynamic in the local church.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yep. were times I would have conversations with congregants [00:30:00] like. Over coffee and I would like have to give that caveat. Well, like I'm gonna tell you my, you know,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Please do not pass this to the board.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: But like, here's our church's position. Yeah, you're right.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That's amazing. Okay, so you have this love for mainline churches, which is very obvious if you listen to you for any amount of time, if you read anything that you have written, very obvious. This is not something I have found in many people, especially many people who have some of the theological ideas that you have and where you've arrived at.
So I'm curious, why are you so passionate about this? This is something I, I don't see a ton of.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yep. Well, I'm glad you asked. Um, so growing up in evangelical spaces, they do a good job of keeping you in Evangelical bubble. And it breaks my heart that I did not know that there was this other group of Christians from literally the foundation of our. Our [00:31:00] country of these denominations that have been like faithfully following Jesus that I knew nothing about.
I never stepped foot inside a Methodist service or Presbyterian service or Lutheran service. Um, you name it, like any of the mainline spaces, I, I was terrified of them and honestly was told, avoid them at all costs. That's where your faith goes to die. And one of the things that I feel like evangelicals do a great job of is like painting this picture of you either believe like we do or you're an atheist.
There is no, like,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Those are your options.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: you know what I'm saying? I mean, truly that's what I believe. Like, you either, like, you either like Baptist or like evangelical or you're not, or like you have no faith whatsoever. And so like I have found so much, uh, like my mind has just been like, just been blown that there is this whole segment of, of churches and Christians in America, Protestant Christians in America that have been like faithfully following Jesus.
And I didn't know [00:32:00] anything about it. And so like, I want to now make it my life's mission inform and educate people who might want to clinging down to faith. Maybe they're becoming a little like disenfranchised with evangelicalism. I want to like say everything within me that there is there, there are other options and there are beautiful options and you don't have to be scared of them.
And I now know the language of both worlds and I can help you bridge the gap. And I want to do that. I want to like help you know that there are other, other things out there. And I love, I love framing like the mainline churches in this way. I feel like mainline churches are public libraries. Um, they're like scattered throughout communities and they're not trying to sell you anything.
fact, they're really quiet and uh, they're full of wisdom and it's truly a place where everyone is welcome. Just the other day, I went to public library couple, couple nights ago and there's a guy with a shopping cart, like all of his belongings. There's like. A couple that [00:33:00] are like mentoring a kid. Like, it's like, it is its most diverse space, like where truly everyone is welcome.
And if you ask a question to a librarian, they like beam with joy. They're like, oh my gosh. Like I've been waiting for somebody to ask me a question, you know, like, this questions are awesome. And they're just like, sprinkled through communities and they're changing people's lives like one person at a time.
And like, I want to make it my goal to tell people how beautiful and amazing public libraries are and how these churches are just like, committed to like, you know, making a difference in their community. And that is one thing I'm so proud of and being in a mainline space is like Kansas City would look different if resurrection didn't exist because of just the radical difference we're making in the community.
Um, being the hands and feet of Jesus. And that's not just unique to resurrection. Most mainline churches are deeply ingrained in their communities and making a, a tangible difference. And so, That's kind my spiel. But like, I'm, I'm so passionate about it and, and mainly just because like I [00:34:00] was raised in a world that I didn't know it existed, and I don't think I'm alone in that.
You know, I've seen, I've gotten, you know, just dozens of, of messages from people thinking like, man, like what is a mainline? I get that question all the time. What do you mean mainline? What do you mean mainline churches? Like, okay, well let's back up. Let's talk about it. You know, and it's funny, that name is like, got some ambiguity to it.
They don't really sure where it started, but 1920s, you know, there was a railroad in Philadelphia that see all these steeples of some of these like older denominations, but it's kinda where the mainline phrase came from. But it's, know, the big four are what? Presbyterian, Lutheran, Episcopalian, Methodist.
Those are kind of the big four. others. There's actually some Baptist, um, mainline churches. But
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: So in this analogy of yours, which I, I like the library analogy. I resonate with it. Does that mean the evangelical mega church is Amazon?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Okay. I haven't thought about that. I like that though, maybe.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: [00:35:00] I mean, I'm just trying to, I'm just trying to fit within your analogy here
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. I like that. I like that. I haven't thought about that. That's
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: because I do like the, the library analogy and. These days, I've, I've been spending a lot more time with a Mennonite community, and I've loved it, and I've loved it. You know, you describing it as a library is such a good.
analogy of like Yeah.
And, and there's something so rich and there's a tradition and there's all these things you get invited into.
And, you know, most of the people I talk to, they're like, you know, fifth generation Mennonites, and like, you know, it's, there's me. I'm like, no, I just really like this theology. Like, I, I don't come from, I don't have my last name's not Yoder. You know, like I have nothing, like all these people have this tradition.
And I think a lot of these mainline communities, people have been in it for a long time. And those of us that may be coming from a more evangelical space. It's like we might be attracted to the theology or the practice, or, you know, the way they embody this or that. And then it's like, you, you are getting absorbed into this whole thing [00:36:00] that can be very beautiful.
But I had the same experience growing up where I, I always had these very negative views of, you know, oh man, what a bummer if you were stuck in one of those, right?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: totally.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: And then you experience it, you're like, oh, it's not exactly what I
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: That's
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: heard. It was, you know, this is actually kind of cool.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. And you know, obviously mainline churches have been on a severe decline. You know, there's no, like, no sugarcoating that, I mean, it has been a severe decline, um, in attendance. They kind of had their heyday fifties and sixties, and then since then, it has been in severe decline. And there's a variety of reasons for that.
You know, like, I don't necessarily have to get into that today, but, um, I wanna change it, you know, like I wanna, just want to, at least at the bare minimum. Provide people the space and like help be a bridge to say like, you don't have to be scared of this. Like they, it's orthodox Christianity. It's just practice in a different way, you know?
So [00:37:00] anyway.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Okay.
You wrote something that deeply resonated with me, and yet I have found this is not a popular idea in practice. And so I was like, oh, I gotta talk about this because I love this idea. I, I tried to implement this idea as a lead pastor and quickly learned. I am way in the minority in my thinking on this.
So let's get more people to think this way. So here's what you wrote. You said what if some churches are shrinking, not because they compromised, but because they refuse to compromise because they welcomed L-G-B-T-Q people when it cost them donors because they spoke against Christian nationalism when it cost them members because they pursued racial reconciliation when it made people uncomfortable.
That's faithfulness. That costs something and that is okay.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Mm.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I love that because I remember the season in which I ended up departing as a lead pastor was because [00:38:00] our attendance went down. And our giving went down. And both of those went down because I started addressing things that were going on. You know, this was in 2020 and George Floyd had been murdered and Portland was having this reaction and it's like, we're, we're gonna talk about it.
We're gonna lean into it. We're gonna figure out how do we be the church in this? And you know, some of those people that this is not what I come to church for, you know, and they, they would leave and then all of a sudden you have, you know, some of the elder board's like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Something's wrong.
And I remember making this argument like, this might be what faithfulness looks like for us right now. Like we made need to lose people right now for us to be the church. And to me it wasn't a crazy idea. It was just like, Yeah.
I would love for the church to grow. I would love for more people to find it.
But that might not be every season. And right now we may be in a season where we just have to take an uncomfortable position. And Bo I found that there was not a lot of people who resonated with that idea, but then I read this that you had written and I thought, there are other people who see this. So why do [00:39:00] you think.
Let's put it this way. Here's the question I'd love to ask. How do we make space for that? Not saying that every church should decrease, and that is the goal. 'cause that's not what you're saying, but how do we make space to say, look, faithfulness is the goal. And sometimes faithfulness will lead to new people coming, and sometimes faithfulness will mean some people are going to leave and both can be faithful.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: That's right. Yeah. I want to like give like two parts to this. Um, the first thing, like, I remember writing that, and I remember thinking specifically about Brian Zan. He's a, he's been an influence in my life, if you know anything about his story, like his book Water to Wine, like he went on a massive theological shift and the shirt, his church shrunk significantly during that season.
Um, but now he's, he's reaching an entire different audience. He's impacted people like me and now are like totally changing, you know, my, my little world or whatever it may be. Um, and. [00:40:00] you think about like what that cost him. And that's what I was thinking about. Like I remember reading that like it cost him a lot.
cost him probably a lot of relationships, a lot of church growth, church attendance, but like he was being faithful to represented in Jesus Christ. And that was like the, the heart of what his message is, is like if you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus. He kind of coined that and that has become like, you know, such an integral piece of my faith and other people's faith and, you know, countless others.
Um, but that cost him a lot. is also true of like the church I'm at now. Um, our senior pastor, his name's Adam Hamilton, he's written dozens and dozens of books. He's been like the, the biggest like champion of at least Methodism, for a long time. And he's pastored the same church for 36 years.
And he's done it in just a humble and a gracious way. He's a megachurch pastor, but you never know it type, type situation. Um, you know, we've got more women location pastors than men. Like, I mean, it's like, so much of it is so beautiful and he's done such a great job. in, in 2024, the Methodist Church split.
Um, over [00:41:00] the issue of inclusion and, um, this idea was really kind of accelerated for me because as a whole was already on decline then. significant portion of United Methodist churches left, uh, the, the UMC and became global Methodists at the cost of like, membership to UMC, you know, like over that issue.
And they were not willing to, to bend there. And so not only did you have this denomination that's, that's struggling, but then you make a stance like that where we say with our full chest, like, we are going to no strings attached. You are fully welcome to the highest level of leadership. And um, you know, we're not gonna try to change you, in fact, like we're gonna celebrate you and honor you exactly how you are.
And we're gonna view it as like, you know, God has, has created you infinite worth and value and who you are is so important to us. And so we're gonna just like, double down on that. it, it, it hurt resurrection, it hurt the UMC. [00:42:00] But what I believe, similar to like Brian Z's story, like 10 years from now, hoping that the UMC and other.
you know, denominations or whatever other churches, just say churches in general that decide like faithfulness to what we believe in Jesus, um, will pay off because there's gonna be a lot of people, and we're seeing it week in and week out where, where I am people coming through the door looking for a safe place to worship because of X, Y, z, you name it.
And they know that they're not gonna be judged, they're not gonna be, you know, like, we're not gonna say like, you need to change, just gonna celebrate an army. You exactly who you are. Now, I will say just because like this is important, people just think, oh, then anything goes you don't, you don't like, you're not hard on saying that's not.
We've had conversations about, you know, other lines that we draw that are sinful. You know, like, I mean, a great example is, well then where's the line? Well, it's like consensual relationships between two adults. Like, you know, and if, if, if you're [00:43:00] in that, you know, it happens to be same, same gender like.
Cool. Like if you're in a consensual loving relationship between two people, um, that's good. But if you're outside the bounds of that, like of course we're gonna, we're gonna call it out. Of course. Like we, we would think that that's sin. Um, so I mean, I just wanted to make that that nuance real quick, but like, you know, for us, being faithful has cost us something.
And I think some churches, you're exactly right in that there are seasons in which faithfulness will cost you something. And gosh, it was just the other day I was having a conversation. Was it, is it Arthur Cole Riley, I think says something about advocacy and like, it's not true advocacy. You're not truly advocating for people unless it's costly.
You know, like, and, and I think there's so much truth to that. When you think about repentance, if you think about like, you know, putting in the work and doing the hard things like it is always, always, always cost you something. And I think the same is true with faithfulness. Like, are we really being faithful if it's not costing us anything?
And. [00:44:00] Jesus was killed for it. So like it obviously cost him him a lot, you know, and, and I think, you know, as churches, I think that should be our metric. Like what is this costing us to truly follow Jesus? Because if it's pretty safe and it's pretty like cool as a cucumber and there's nothing, you're not really ruffling any feathers, then I would argue like, are we really following Jesus?
So,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: yeah.
I love that. Great answer. Okay. Something that we're seeing a lot of, and I am realizing we need to talk more about this. I, I saw you, right? While we argue about whether Christian nationalism is really Christian, they are dismantling the separation of church and state.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Mm-hmm.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: And what I'm noticing is different and I I've had to try to navigate this with some, some people who, you know, are like, why are we talking about politics right now?
And I think the thing that, that, that pastors need to talk more about and so we'll, we'll create some space here, is that in previous era, like someone said this to me the other [00:45:00] day, they said, you know, for years I would never know my, whether my pastor voted Democrat or Republican. That was the accusation.
The point being today, it would be really obvious to figure out probably, you know, almost every preacher what who they voted for. And I said, well here's, here's what we gotta realize. In previous eras when our, our government leaders would, you know, make a pol a political point, they would make a political point, right?
Like, here's why we're gonna do X, Y, z. What we're seeing now on a scale that I don't think we're talking about enough is that the political points are using spiritual language to support why the political points make sense. And, you know, Pete Seth is, is kind of one of the front runners of this,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yep.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: of why are we doing X, Y, and Z?
Well, these are biblical values we're fighting for and we're, you know, and all this. And so when that becomes the way that the government is, is describing politics, I then think the church has a different kind of [00:46:00] responsibility to almost go into the, that conversation and go, that's not what that language means, that you are hijacking, you know, these ideas.
And then the, the, you know, latest is the, the war in Iran. Obviously the whole talk about this is Armageddon and this is, you know, a a, a Holy War and all these kind of images that are being. Referenced again, these are hijacking of images for political gains, and I love that you're like, look, they're dismantling this.
We're over here arguing over it, and I, I think we need to talk about it. What, what do you think we need to say to help people realize how the conversation politically is different right now than it has been?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: You know, I think you're exactly right. And I think this started, you know, like one book I think about all the time is Jesus and John Wayne. Um, it kind of draws a straight line about how we got here and, and I think, I think you're exactly right. I think it's been a long time coming, but I think in 2016 it was given a very prominent face and a very prominent voice, and that [00:47:00] was a very targeted campaign to evangelicals.
Um, and then so when you start you know, wrapping faith in a flag. It is essentially what you're doing. Like we're, we're, we're, we're like, what'd you, what's the language you use? Hijacked, like, we've hijacked Christian language for political benefit. That's a serious problem. But not just evangelicals.
I think, I think this has happened before, actually, I know this has happened before. Um, in fact, I write about, I'm writing about this now, is there was a, I believe it was a Presbyterian minister who, um, is the one that, so a mainline, mainline church, which is normally known as like Progressive is the one that advocated for, um, the line to be put in the pledge of Allegiance One nation under God.
Because of, again, this fear of communism. And so like, like we've, we've always seen this meshing of faith and, and politics. And then at any time it's used on both [00:48:00] sides of the aisle. Because, I mean, I don't think, you know, liberals or progressives are immune to it, it either. Like, love your neighbor could also become hijacked to for political gain, even though it's a very Jesus message.
But if it, you know what I'm saying? I think it could be happening on both sides. I think you're exactly right. Um, I think there's a lot of danger, a lot of danger in that. My argument for like inclusion even rests on this, this idea. I think where we went wrong to determine like, like the legality of same-sex relationships.
I think where we went wrong is when the church and the state got in bed together to determine what a marriage is. Does that make sense? Like,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: To Oh, totally.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: a marriage is like a spiritual idea, you know? And then the state decided like, we're gonna recognize that spiritual idea, whereas like a church should be able to decide what they want.
I might disagree. If you think a marriage between a man and a woman, like I might adamantly disagree with you, but like you as a church get to decide what you think a marriage is, just so like I get to decide now, if I think it's two consensual adults that [00:49:00] like, are in a loving, caring relationship with each other, then I get to decide that as well.
But when the state gets involved and there's certain tax benefits and there's, you know, like to me like that is a major, major problem. And I think you're, you're exactly right. And what, what I was saying whenever I wrote that my, my heart behind that was like, we're spending all this time like debating the theology, but at a fundamental level, like what's happening is like that wall that's so important to our democracy, not even faith, like I'm talking about just as democracy is living in a free country, um, that's what they're dismantling.
And I think about my Muslim friends and neighbors who are just swept up in it all and they're gonna have to live in a Christian nation. And that just breaks my heart. Like, know, and I don't, you're exactly right. Like we need to talk about that more.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Well, and then even the latest, You.
know, I was watching, I think it was Marco Rubio who said, you know, Iran is, is being run by a bunch of religious fanatics. And I'm like, so is our [00:50:00] government, you know what I mean? I'm like, what are, what are we talking about here? Like. It's just, you know, which side do you like?
Like
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Mm-hmm.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: we're seeing that merge together and it, it always ends poorly, you know, and I remember early on in my own journey, working through, you know, can I be affirming and a Christian, and, you know, that took me years to, to process what am my earliest ideas of really exploring it was what if we separated, okay, there's a Civil marriage and then there's, you know, a biblical marriage or, you know, that was language at the time, right?
Um, like maybe that was a way of navigating it. And I do think there's something definitely to that where it would simplify the conversation for like, look, here's what the government acknowledges for tax benefits and, you know, x, y, z like it,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Or
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: If you have that, then you get these advantages. And then, hey, if you, if you, for, you know, your religious reasons, you want to have this element of it and you know, in a community like, then you can go and get that.
And if they overlap, they overlap, but they're [00:51:00] separate would be way cleaner. it. would make a lot more sense, but. We're not there, unfortunately.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: we're not. Yeah, we're well past that,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: We are well past that. Okay. A couple practical things that, you've written on that I wanna touch on quickly. Um, okay. So you, you recently wrote about fasting and it, it perked my ears because this is like a thing I'm getting into lately, and I don't even think I've shared this publicly yet, but, um, I'm at a stage in my life where I've never like, done well with fasting.
And it's always, you know, it's hard. It's always hard, right? But I'm like, look, I wanna push myself mentally, physically, spiritually. Like, I just want to try things. I don't want to be complacent, whatever. And so I've, I've been playing around with some like different ways of fasting. I don't know if it's just like I'm at the right age, the right mindset, whatever, but I am loving it.
And so I'm like working this into like my weekly rhythm. And it's not like a, oh gosh, I'm like somber and you know, like I really enjoy [00:52:00] it. And it, and you said something about it that I was like, that like so resonates with my practice and I know you practice it differently 'cause you explained how you do it.
Um, but here's what you wrote that I loved. You said fasting is the practice of making room. It's the radical act of saying, I have enough, I've taken in enough and I need to stop for a minute so I can remember what matters. And I, I love the way you say it because I think that's what I'm enjoying so much about, about saying no, like.
I, I, and I did a whole podcast episode on how I think about my day in terms of drinks of like, Okay.
what do I drink in the morning? And then what do I drink mid-morning? Then what do I drink for lunch? What do I drink in the afternoon? What do you know? Like literally I can like think through what time of day it is and I just love different drinks.
Like it's something fun to me, but it's a consuming mentality, you know, of like, what do I get next? What do I get next? And fasting has caused me to like disrupt that, where it's like, oh, I, I want to go get my cold brew from Starbucks, but I'm [00:53:00] not gonna get it right now because I can't get it with cream and sugar.
And that's the only way you can get cold brew, right?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Mm-hmm.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: and so it's, it's doing that. But what I'm realizing is it's a reminder every time I do it, I have enough. And just like that is regrounding me. And, um, even when I feel like my stomach's like, oh, it's like. I have enough. I'm not dying. You know what I mean?
Like, I'm overfed. I, I have so many blessed, like even when my body's like telling me, you need something, it's just this reminder. And so I'm early into my own practice of this, and I feel like I'm, I'm on the cusp of it. But then I read that you wrote about, so I'm like, all right, I'm gonna do some, some early research here out loud.
What have you learned about fasting? What? 'cause this is not something we talk a ton about, at least not in the circles I'm in. Um, but I'm hoping maybe we can revive this a little bit.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Yeah, that's a great question. it's something that I, you know, have just started exploring the last couple years, but I've made it a [00:54:00] regular part of my, my life and, you know, I didn't, I didn't come up with this idea of, of making room, you know, essentially what you're doing. You know, I mean, there's like a lot of.
Misconceptions about, about fasting. It's like, you know, withholding and like, it's almost like this negative, but really it's like making space, making space for something else. You know? Like it's not necessarily like just cutting off and like b it's like, no, like what, what can I insert into that, whatever it may be.
And for me, like that idea of inserting something else in place, I mean, obviously a, a spiritual component, not. you know, uh, cake for cookies, but like, you know, like, like giving up something or like stopping something form of fasting and inserting something else. And for me, like I had a, just extremely unhealthy, I've had an un unhealthy relationship with, with food my entire life.
Um, and it's something that I'm, I'm constantly, constantly battling. Um, but you know, as of late it's been screens. It's like, it's [00:55:00] been like this, it's like the, you know, there's a lot of science done around, I'm not, not trying to get into it, but like the, the habit loop, you know, there's the cue, there's the reward, you know, and those types of things.
And like, I find myself just like craving this numbness or this connection or some form of like triggering in my brain where it's like, I'm not healthy or whole unless I get this like endorphin release. And a lot of times that's connected to screens. And so, you know, I've, I've been exploring. What that looks like whenever I get that urge for that, you know, like that, that hit of whatever it may be, inserting something else, you know?
And so like, I, I bought like a, a little small, little, little bible and so like, this sounds weird and it sounds like super, like dumb spiritual, but like, instead of reaching for my phone, I find myself reaching for this. Like, it's like with always within an arm's reach and I'll just open up to like, the attitudes and just read it for the 50th time this week.
You know, like that's just, I mean, it's my personal where I want to camp out and like I want to memorize 'em all and like, [00:56:00] you know, like do that in this season of my life. But instead of the, the hit from something else, like I'm trying to, you know, make space for a hit that might and inform my relationship with God.
So it's not necessarily that idea of withholding, it's just making room for something different. So
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: yeah, that's a great idea. When you, when you have that room, you have, you have the space to have something new. And I think that's a great way of looking at it. Okay. Another insight you have that I think is a huge shift that I've also seen, you know, in the more, the mainline transition, you talk about prayer changing and praying things that other people have prayed, which the way I was raised, like those are fake prayers.
You know, those are not real prayers. Like you gotta come up with it if you, if you want to be real Christian. Um, but you say the prayers that feel repetitive to evangelicals are actually profound theological formations. How, how have you found beauty and power and praying things that you didn't write?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah. [00:57:00] So to me it's a, it's a, it's part of being a, being part of a larger faith community than what's around me in this present time. So when you think about faith community, you think about, oh, the people I go to church with right now, you know, that's my faith community, but it's broadened my horizons to think that like my faith community or my faith tradition.
It goes back to the 18 hundreds. Like it starts with John Wesley, who's like in the fields preaching the gospel, and he's establishing this movement of Methodism that's, that's withstood the test of time. And within that, there has become liturgy. become like, like things that like I would consider church fathers that have handed down and wrestled with and, and thought through.
And, um, so to me I'm viewing it as like I'm connected not only to like the people in this worship space with me, but also I'm connected back through time of these people that have, have been wrestling with the same questions and have been wondering the same things about God and have sat with in the [00:58:00] same state of mind, maybe that I'm in like full of grief or full of hope, um, whatever it may be, whatever season of life that I'm in.
And I find myself, and I, I don't know if I was ever honest about this in evangelical spaces. There's a lot of times I simply don't know what to say. I just don't know what to say. So in those moments, someone else can say it for me and to me, like I found so much beauty in that like, I think a lot of times in like what's so amazing about being in Christian community is like if when I don't feel like worshiping the people next to me that are singing with their full chest, like they're doing it for me, know?
And I just think like, we don't, we don't, view worship and we don't view our faith as a communal faith enough. And I feel like liturgy provides the space do that. I don't have the words, someone else has 'em for me, and I'm still gonna worship, even though I don't know what to say and I don't know, [00:59:00] you know, how to do it.
And of course, like I'm, I'm, I'm praying myself all the time. Like, it's not like I, it's a total substitute where I just get out the, I mean, I love the book of common prayer, but like, I'm not just gonna get it out every day and read the book of common prayer. Some people do. But for me, like there's that hybrid, you know, it's like that both, like, when I don't know what to say, at least there's stuff out there of people who, who can say it for me or carry my faith forward when I don't feel like doing it myself.
So
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Oh, that's So good.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I, I found tremendous benefit starting to add the Jesus prayer into my, my practice. And That's you know, a simple Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me as sinner, and just the simple prayer that has been prayed throughout hundreds of years, all over the world by all sorts of Christians.
And it's just this beautiful centering prayer that. I didn't write and uh, you know, and it's just, you feel connected to something bigger. And I think That's for someone who hasn't had that experience or has only felt like I have to write all this, or I [01:00:00] have to say it for it to be real. There's, there's tons of, tons of beauty that the library church can, can give to you.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: That's exactly
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: take advantage of it.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yep. That's exactly right. And I'm in a season where like I'm not preaching every week. know, we have, we have a senior pastor. It's videoed into all of our locations. And so a lot of times when I'm leading in worship, I'm at one of our locations. uh, I'm leading one of the element other worship elements.
And so recently I've been on the pastoral prayer quite a bit. And all that is, is like I get to write a prayer. It doesn't have to be liturgy, but we close that prayer time. So I'm, sometimes I'm given prompts. Like this past Sunday, I was told to at least mention the war that, or the military attack or whatever it was that had started.
So we prayed for, for people over there. We prayed for, you know, our military, whatever, like, so that was like one prompt I was given. I was able to write that however I wanted. we always close our prayer time by praying the Lord's Prayer. And so each week I get up there and I say, Hey. And if you're here today and you don't know the words to the [01:01:00] Lord's Prayer, um, it's gonna be on the screen.
So feel free to open your eyes and you can read it along. But every time we close, we close just by saying the Lord's Prayer. And I think the same thing, exactly what you just described. Not only has this church prayed the Lord's Prayer for decades already, Christians have been praying that from the beginning of our movement of what we, Jesus teaching us to pray this way.
And so each and every week I get to like, think about how I'm connected now to the thousands and millions of, of Christians through time that are praying that same prayer. It's really special
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: It is. It is really cool.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: to think that like, ah, like, you know, so
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: we're giving you per permission, listeners, if you wanna, if you wanna pray something that someone else wrote, you have our permission today.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Yeah, that's right.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: There's beauty in it. Alright. I wanna transition and ask you the questions that I like to ask each of our guests at the end of the episode, and we compare your answers to theirs.
We'll begin with a couple wine ones. If I were to ask you, Bo, what's the best glass of wine you've ever had in your life? [01:02:00] I suspect it may not be a BOA box, but maybe it is. Is there a story that comes to your mind? Is it a particular glass that you had, a particular bottle where you were, who you're with, what, what comes to your mind of like, that's the best wine I can ever remember?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yep. Uh, great question. Um, I think back to whenever we were gonna transition from Iowa to Texas to care for my mother-in-law, we sold our house a little bit early. It was like right in that season of like, um, 2022. So like, the market was insane, you know? So we, we sold our house and like did the bidding war thing, and we left, we were left a few months of like gap between when, when we were moving.
And we ended up staying with some friends who, amazingly generous people, but extremely, extremely wealthy. Like extremely wealthy. They had a full finished basement with an indoor swimming pool and, uh. Not only were they generous with their space for us and our family to live there for three months, he was also very generous with his bourbon and his wine.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yes.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: we would, we would [01:03:00] go upstairs and we would just be hanging out on their patio and he would go grab a bottle of wine. And I honestly can't tell you what it is, but I remember one in particular, he was like, he made some comment about, I mean he was also on our finance team at the church I was at, so we had a great relationship with them.
He made some comment about the bottle of wine being what I make per week or something. And uh, just 'cause he knew like that, that information And, uh, he opened it up and I, I took a drink and it was like, it was life changing, you know? I said I haven't had much, I, what I remember the most was like, how smooth.
Like, just, just how smooth. It's like I was just, oh yeah, that's probably the best, best drink I've had. And the fact that he made a comment about that, it's was about the amount of money that I make per week was solidified for me is, is, uh, one of the most memorable moments for, for a glass of wine.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I think that would do the trick that would, that would lock it into your memory of like, this is going to be delicious.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. it was good.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That's fantastic. Alright. Which member of church history would you trust to pick out a bottle of wine for you [01:04:00] and who would you not trust and why? You
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: my goodness. That is such a tough question that
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: get to find out what you think about church fathers and leaders.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: I think I have to pick the, the bottle of wine that I want is, is, is John Wesley, I'll say this because not only am I a Methodist, and I'm a true Methodist now because I'm a champion of John Wesley,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: There you go.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: what I love they say about John Wesley. And I think what the church we can all learn from is they called him vile because he was out preaching in the fields and to the coal miners and not behind a pulpit in a church.
so I want somebody picking out a bottle of wine for me that's a little bit vile, you know, it's got a little bit of an edge to him, a little bit to, to push the boundaries. And the person that I don't want to, I'd probably say probably Edwards,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah, that's, that's solid.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: like there's some harm there.
Uh, I don't think God's [01:05:00] angry, so
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Can you
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: him, don't,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: have trying to have a drink with that guy?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah, I'm, I'm gonna pass on that.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: He'd just be like, glaring at you while you're drinking? Or like s Sorry, sir.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: and somebody just totally canceled me, but that, that's my answer.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Not, not, not on this podcast, friend. Not, not on this podcast. That's amazing. Uh, that's Jonathan Edwards. In case you were like, who is he talking about? Sinners in the hands of an angry God is the, is the reference there.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yep.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: is something you used to believe that it turned out later you were wrong about?
You've got some options.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Um, let's see. One that I think would be the most, uh. Yeah. An errancy of scripture.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Hmm. You're more likely to get canceled for that one. Bo
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yep. I mean, I clung to it so hard for so long and you know, [01:06:00] I just don't see it. I don't see it anymore,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: has anyone ever printed out a copy of the Chicago Defense of an Errancy and given it to you? 'cause they were so
mad at you.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: no, '
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: cause I, I've, I have that.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: really,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah. Someone gave me that to me one time.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: hear that story sometime.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah, I, I, I threw it in the trash. What do you see as the main issue facing Christianity in the US today,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Oh my goodness.
If I were gonna boil it down to something, I would say, uh, the sin of certainty. I think, uh, there is in the West just an attitude towards having all of the answers and everything all night, nice and neat. And with that, that sin of certainty there has been, know, has led to political [01:07:00] certainty. It's led to, um, relational certainty, there's not enough curiosity in our world today.
I think that's the biggest problem in the church
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: which leads you to Inerrancy and a whole bunch of other weird things?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, you're right.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: What is something that's blowing your mind right.
now that you're, you're learning or you're thinking about?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Oh man, there's so much. Um, I'm going to go on a little bit of a tangent, mainly because, and this is gonna sound self-promotional, but it's not. Maybe you'll have me back someday, but I'm navigating. I didn't realize how nuanced and crazy the publishing world
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah, it's funky.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: It's really bizarre and the like the weight of platform that like goes into those decisions.
really matter [01:08:00] how brilliant you might be or how faithful you might be or a lot, it's like a lot of it is strictly platform, but I'm also learning some other things about it that's just still a little bizarre. didn't realize any of that, so that, that's blowing my mind right now. little teasers that I am working on a book deal, so
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah. A anybody who's been in that conversation has the same thought of like, this is the funkiest thing,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: it's weird.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: and what you, what you think it would be about was like, Yeah, thi this, you know, this proposal's the best we've ever seen, or this idea, or, no, no, no.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, the
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: How, how many followers do you have on Instagram and, and TikTok?
And you're like. What This is what?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: I get it, it's a business, you know, but I just, I had this assumption that like, oh, like people are just gonna buy into this idea and like, they're gonna love the idea and it's all about the content and what I'm saying. It's like, no, like they don't, they, they really don't care.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: And then if you want to share Christian ideas [01:09:00] on, on the Christian platforms that are different than the previously agreed upon Christian ideas, you, you see an even narrower, uh, response. They're like, oh, that's, That's not something we're interested in. You're like, oh, gotcha. Like it's got, I, I have to reinforce what currently exists and if I challenge it, I'm bad for business as well.
So then
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: pool just gets smaller and smaller.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah. And that may not be the answer you're looking for, but I don't
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: That was good.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: spiritual things,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: We're all about authenticity here, but whatever. Whatever you got, that's what we want. What's something you are excited about right now?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: This, finishing this glass of
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: There we go.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Um, no, I'm, I'm, I'm working like a full, full steam ahead on, on a project, um, really that's helping bridge that gap of, uh, the evangelical space to the mainland world. And that is like consuming my thoughts. It's, uh, what I'm most excited about, what I'm dreaming [01:10:00] about.
And, um, I'll be able to share more about that later. But it's a, it's kind of a, a, it's been inside of me for, for quite a while and I'm excited to get it all down and on paper and, uh, share it with the world. So that's what I'm most excited about. It's, uh, where we started is convincing people that there's a different way to be Christian, so it's not just one way.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Beautiful.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: So, yeah,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: All right. As we wrap up this episode, is there anything I have not asked you about that you're like, look, I gotta, I gotta talk about this before we wrap this up.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Do you read fiction books?
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I do.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: You're a, um, what's the one we were bantering about with the game show? What's, I just went blank. Dungeon
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Oh, dungeon crawler car. I forgot about this.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: You're a fan.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I, Okay.
let, let me, let me preface this 'cause this is good. This is a good take an [01:11:00] explanation.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Okay.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Alright, dear listeners, we're about to go to the nerdiest tangent. We've ever gone on this, on this show, I think ever I did ask, but I want to clarify what I'm about to say.
Uh, there's a series called Dungeon Crawler, Carl, that is, I, it is nerdy. I don't even know how to describe it. It's, it's bizarre. And there's like eight of these right now, I think. And the guy just keep, I don't even know what he is gonna end at, but I think there's a ton of 'em. So I, I listened to it on audio.
I don't know if that's how you did it. 'cause that's the, I think the only way you can do these and it's got all the voices and all this, and. It's kind of a fever dream of a story where it is like all sorts of randomness, but the dude is so creative and here's my rule on fiction. Okay, so this is why it works for me, and then we'll see why you don't like it.
My rule for fiction is this. I will suspend belief on just about anything as long as you're consistent. So, you know, if you tell me, Hey, wizards can do [01:12:00] X, Y, and Z, great, I'll go along with your world as long as you're consistent. So like, you can make the rules, but like say, do the rules. What I have found with a lot of people is like, they'll make stuff up and then it like, doesn't make any sense.
You're like, look, I'm willing to go with you But he didn't, you're not even consistent. I think he's consistent with the craziness that he's created and because of that it's like, okay, it's weird and it's funky, but like, I can, I can hang with you and it's entertaining and it's a wild ride. I, I do, I enjoy him.
What, you're not a fan.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: no, I was not a fan and I'm, I'm alone in that. I
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: How far did you get?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: I mean, I made it all through book one. I finished the whole book. I gave it a fair chance. It's just not my thing. And so this is a me problem. I
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Clearly
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: been, it has been like recommended to me countless times. Fiction reading has changed my life.
And I wanna say that to any, anybody that's listening, you need to read fiction books and if you wanna become a better human being, read fiction
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: co-sign a hundred percent.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Um, for me, again, [01:13:00] my issue is I love reading, like literary fiction. So fiction that's like deep lessons. Like, you know, like you're becoming more empathetic in, or like, you know, giving me a, a wor giving me a glimpse of a world that is like challenging my worldview or how I might see things.
And that book just felt so. Childish to me. Not that you can't learn stuff from it. I mean, I think you can, it just like it rubbed me the wrong way the whole time. I was like, I can't do this. This is not my vibe, this is not my thing. But I've heard great things about it and obviously, you know, like even the rest of the series is what I mean.
But I, I, I listened to all of book one and I will say it was gripping, like the, the narration. Denman, I think's the author, but like, I don't remember who, what the guy's name is that does the audio for the books, but, um, princess Donut, the Cat, there you go. Little teaser for the audience.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Okay.
I'm, I'm gonna push on you a little bit. Have you read, um, the [01:14:00] Hunger Games?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, that was one of the first fiction books I ever read. But that was like, that was before I was like an actual reader that is like, picked it up on a whim back, you know, when it came out and read the whole thing and loved it. But then I went a whole season without reading fiction ever. So.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: So I actually, I'm late to the party on Hunger Games. I just. The last couple months, read all, all five of those with my daughter. Uh, she talked to me and she's like, dad, would you read the Hunger Games with me? And I was like, let's do it. So.
we read all five of those and I really liked 'em. And I would say that creates a, uh, here's why I think fiction is so brilliant, is it creates empathy in you because it puts you in other people's shoes.
And then it gets you to think, what would I do if I were them? What would I do in that scenario? Right? And I think that is how you develop the muscle of empathy is get out of your own world, get out of your own head, and start going, what would it be like to this person? 'cause then in real life, if you develop that muscle, you, you see that person you know, at lunch and you're [01:15:00] like, oh, I wonder what they've had to deal with.
And I wonder what I would do if I was them. And like, now all of a sudden you're empathizing with them rather than judging them. Well, I think this is a brilliant, uh, fiction as it gets you to do this, uh, hunger Games gets you to imagine this. I mean, utterly horrific. Conundrum of you are, you know, at the mercy of this corrupt government who makes you kill these other kids for sport.
And you don't want to, but you have no choice otherwise you get killed. And then it makes you, you know, what would you do? Like, you know, what, how would you handle this? And it, it kind of puts you that, I think Dungeon Carl, Carl does that in a goofier way, right? Where it's like, okay, your world has been taken over, you've been forced into this game that you don't wanna play.
It's, it's a nerdier version of Hunger Games. It's like, what would you do? Would you fight these people? Would you create allies? Would you try to take 'em down? Would you even, like, it like gets you to think about like, ah, that would be really problematic. And for me, I just don't think, now, again, if you don't like a story, I think it's fine to be like, [01:16:00] I don't, doesn't do it for me.
I, no, no shame in that game. But for me, I just think I can find that empathy type thing in almost any of these stories. And there's certainly ones I think are told better than others, right.
Um, but. These carry over to, you know, what kind of a person do you want to be in real life? And It's, almost like, do you, do you read, um, biographies?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Oh yeah.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: So I love reading biographies 'cause I feel like it gives you a different timeline to view your own life, right? Because you read a book and you're usually, it's like from the, this person's, you know, beginning to when they die and, uh, you're getting to see their whole lifetime in like this, this kind of like scope.
And you're like, oh, I wonder how I would view my life like that. And like, where am I on my journey? And like, it just makes you more reflective. So Yeah, I love reading for all those reasons. And maybe you should give Carl Carl a different DD another chance.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, I might, I mean, it's all the, it's all the craze. He actually, Matt Dimon was in Kansas City [01:17:00] doing an event just a couple weeks ago to, made me think about it too. But,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: What's funny is that you say this like it's a.
hot take. I only know one other person in my life that reads these books
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Really?
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: oh yeah, it's, not.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: popular. I was just in Barnes and Noble the other day and some guy was asking about the first book, and they're like, we don't have it. We haven't had it for weeks. You know, like it's,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Wow,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: yeah,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: I didn't realize this.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: all the rage right now. I'm glad you mentioned biography.
My favorite fiction book called Stoner by John Williams. And it's not stoner as in like, you know, pot. It's like just, I don't know why they named it that, but, um, it is just like a, it's a fiction telling of a guy's life and he's just like this average dude, but to me it's so powerful because I did exactly that.
Like you compare just like, it just
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Yeah.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: of this, this average guy who's like a professor just navigating his life and it's like, oh, it's so powerful. It's good.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: All right. We we got that out. We good.
now?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah, we're good.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: [01:18:00] That's amazing. Uh, I'm gonna love how many people are gonna Google dungeon crawler Coral and be like, what are they talking about? And then for those of you who are gonna buy it on audio and then go, what is going on? It is a random
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: It's
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: story, but it's fun.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: It's
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: If you like it, Bo doesn't like it, so maybe you won't.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: too, yeah, A little too much for me, but
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Well, Bo I have loved your work. I've loved following you. You are mainly a threads guy, is where I see your content. Um, although I've never, I've never clicked with threads, algorithms, so that's not where I, it's not where I create, it's where I absorb a lot of content. But,
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Sure.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: if someone is listening to this episode and they're like, man, I really like this guy.
I like his perspective. They want to go deeper into the mainline experience.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Mm-hmm.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: best way for people to connect with you online?
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Yeah. Um, threads is probably the. The, the most consistent spot. But then I also have a newsletter on Substack, it's called Becoming Mainline, I explore a little bit more in depth, [01:19:00] uh, a little bit more long form. some of these ideas that I just kind of out on threads. So those are the two main spots.
Um, but the, you can just Google becoming Mainline or bo stringer.com. That's the newsletter. And then, yeah, threads. And I'm on Instagram and the other ones. But Threads and Substack are probably the, the best spots,
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Nice. I'll put all those links in the show notes. Well, dude, it has been a joy to talk with you. You're one of those guys. I feel like we've known each other for a long time. Uh, we just have so much in common and, uh, so much about you. I just resonate with, so thank you for the encouragement you offered me and the, the, the ideas you're putting out there, the beauty, you're inviting us all to experience and for taking the time to sit down with me today.
Enjoy a nice. Bow a box with me and uh, and talk about the beauty of Jesus together.
beau-stringer_1_03-05-2026_140132: Yeah. Yeah. Thank you. Thanks for having me. Appreciate you.
jeremy_1_03-05-2026_130133: Well, everybody, thank you for tuning in with us on this episode of Cabernet and Pray. We will catch you all [01:20:00] on the next one.
