Show Notes
"If you put the right things on the inside of you, you will elevate. A balloon only rises because of what's put inside of it."
Season 2 is almost here, but before we get there, we had to pop off. You sent in the comments, the letters, and the DMs, and Mike and Charles popped every balloon to answer them. Some of it's funny, some of it's heavy, all of it's honest.
In this episode: - Life updates: a 13.1-mile birthday run, a hair situation, and Bella's first text to her dad - The one thing that almost makes them pop off (wanting it but not trying) - How do you actually renew your mind? Practice doesn't make perfect, it makes permanent - Sticky statements and the "I am" confessions they speak over themselves every morning - Fasting vs. dieting and what a fasted life really looks like - A single dad who broke his family's trust asks how to rebuild - Conviction vs. condemnation and why there's no condemnation in Christ but there are still consequences - What's your friend good at that he doesn't know he's good at? - Is romance biblical, or is it a man-made concept to sell chocolate? - Fellas: put down the controller and go on a date
Thank you to everyone who followed before you even knew what this was. The people who buy in at the beginning get to see what the seed turns into. We believe in Progression Over Perfection. Through theology, therapy, and community, God can turn trauma into triumph. Season 2 is on the way. Help us name the community by tagging us on Instagram with your idea.
Follow the show: Instagram: @TheOfficialPOPpodcast TikTok: @TheOfficialPOPpodcast YouTube: [youtube.com/@poppodcast](https://www.youtube.com/@TheOfficialPOPPodcast) Follow the hosts: Mike: @iammiketodd Charles: @charlesmetcalf
More from The POP Podcast
"We're building something beautiful, and it's going to take time. Good thing we've got a lot of it." It's the Season 1 finale of the POP Podcast, and this one's different. You sent in the questions, and Mike and Charles popped every balloon to answer them. No topic, no script, just your realest questions and two friends being honest about the answers. In this episode: - Have you ever gone backwards spiritually? (And how to come back) - Shame vs. conviction and why guilt is quicksand - How to tell what's really your identity vs. what you're just performing - What real growth actually looks like (miracle vs. measurement) - Why maybe the goal isn't growth, it's health, because healthy things grow - The red flags they'll never ignore again - What God had to remove that they didn't want to let go of - How to build trust while people watch your process in real time - Why being misunderstood is part of the process - The finale question: is perfection even achievable, or is it all progression?
"Vision is what you see when your eyes are closed." In Episode 7 of the POP Podcast, Mike and Charles talk about the catalyst behind anything impactful, vision, and the unglamorous work it takes to drag it from an idea in your head into something real in front of you.
"Pressure either cooks you or it makes you." In Episode 6 of the POP Podcast, Mike and Charles reframe pressure entirely. It's not the enemy, life includes pressure no matter where you are, and the right amount in the right place is exactly what God uses to make you. The goal isn't to escape pressure. It's to sort it, release the wrong kind, and let the right kind do its work.
"Some people are sleeping that still aren't resting." In Episode 5 of the POP Podcast, Mike and Charles get hot, humble, open, and transparent about the most counter-cultural thing they do, rest. In a culture that glorifies the grind, they make the case that rest isn't laziness. It's a gift, a rhythm, and a commandment.
"Everybody wants friends for the highlight. It's a different thing to have a friend for the fight." In Episode 4 of the POP Podcast, Mike and Charles continue their conversation on community, this time about the friends who show up when it's inconvenient, when you're losing, and when there's nothing to gain.