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Codependency is a phrase that gets tossed around in pop psychology constantly. You see it on social media, infographics, self-help aisles everywhere. It's a huge buzzword.   But in this episode, we take that familiar buzzword and put it under a highly specific, very focused lens. We examine how codependency operates specifically within Christian families and faith communities. 

Codependency is a compulsive cycle of control. Those affected often use excessive busyness and people-pleasing to mask deep-seated insecurities and a lack of true intimacy with God.  

Within many of our congregations, there is a quiet but devastating "famine in the area of healthy nurturing."  We often see pews filled with high-achieving, active members who appear to be the pillars of the church, yet they are starving for genuine connection.   Despite their constant service and outward success, these individuals frequently feel empty, unloved, and deeply insecure. Suffering from a profound low self-esteem that fuels an insatiable need for approval.  

"Precious Jesus"

From the new instrumental  music release by Elder Randall Ogans Sr. & Dorian Ogans “Jesus The Light Of the World" 

This instrumental arrangement interprets and improvises on the time-tested classic by Thomas Whitfield. It ushers in the presence of the Lord,

helping listeners do what is written in Ephesians 5:19, which is to "speak to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord."

"Precious Jesus, how I love You. How I lift high my voice with Your praise. Holy Spirit, I implore Thee, drench my heart as my lips part Your grace.

I am persuaded, Lord, to love You. I have been changed to bless Your name. I am constrained by this great gospel, for ever to worship Thee."

Holy Week Book Giveaway - 3/29/2026 - 4/2/2026

"Religion: How it Helps or Impairs Mental Stability"

A Journey to Spiritual Wellness

When practiced authentically, Christianity offers a framework for navigating life's complexities and anxieties, contributing to mental stability. Conversely, when practiced erroneously, it can significantly impair mental stability, causing confusion, anxiety, and emotional harm. 

 Listen to these independent reviewers review & deep dive discussion about the new book "Religion: How It Helps or Impairs Mental Stability - A Journey to Spiritual Wellness", by DeBorrah K. Ogans and Randall Ogans Sr. 

Pick up your FREE  e-book  on Amazon 

This is an uplifting instrumental interpretation of the hymn "There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood". 

 Elder Randall Ogans Sr. on organ, and son Dorian on piano and guitar, speak the words of the hymn, letting us know that the blood Christ shed enables us to lose all of our guilty stains, washes our sins away, and we can be saved to sin no more. Listen and meditate on the saving power of the blood. 

For many, the Book of Revelation is the "scary" finale of the Bible—a dense thicket of terrifying beasts, cataclysmic plagues, and cryptic warnings that seem more like a fever dream than a spiritual guide. 

Many often avoid it, assuming its complexities are too disturbing or irrational for our modern sensibilities. It’s the book that makes many people uncomfortable.  Scores of readers shy away from reading Revelation and find some of its contents a bit disturbing. Others simply find it weird and even a bit irrational. It’s the scary book. The one you definitely don’t read to your kids as a bedtime story

Yet there is a profound irony in recoiling from a text written on a remote, rocky island two millennia ago.   Why would the visions of an exiled apostle matter in our high-tech, chaotic 21st century?  

The truth is that this "grand finale" is not a script for fear. If you’re reading Revelation as a horror story, designed to scare the living daylights out of you, you are missing the point entirely.  Ultimately, the Book of Revelation is a message of "HOPE and TRUST. 

Take this deep dive with us into the book of Revelation – A Valid Prophecy. It’s a fascinating look at how ancient prophecy is used to decode modern chaos.

It lets us know that Jesus is Coming Soon!   If He came today; Are You Ready? 

In our culture, marriage is often treated as a legal contract—an agreement between two people that can be torn up when the terms are no longer satisfying.

But "Holy Matrimony" is a "Covenant". It is a sacred relationship designed and sanctioned by God, our Creator and Maker.  A Covenant is a sacred vow witnessed by God and made to God in the presence of witnesses... for Christians it is the most sacred solemn agreement that one can make between a man and a woman. When you keep God as the center, your motivation for staying together shifts from "what do I get", to honoring a vow made to the Almighty.

Too many homes have transformed from sanctuaries of peace into battlegrounds, a competition of wills, or a slow, agonizing degrading of character. When a relationship feels like a burden, many couples conclude that divorce is the only exit. 

However, many marriages dissolve not because they are inherently broken beyond repair, but because they were "unequally yoked" from the very beginning. By building on worldly concepts and the selfish pursuit of "what is good for me", couples unknowingly set a foundation that cannot sustain the weight of life.

To restore a troubled union, you must look beyond secular advice and return to the original design of "Holy Matrimony."   Marriage God's Way.

We realize that some marriages were never meant to be. The question is asked: “What’s Love Got To Do With It”?   In many cases, the answer is “Nothing”.  It wasn’t Love that brought you together, but rather, what we call “intoxicating affections”, which don't last.

However, if that is not the case, and you are willing to yield to God's will and way for your marriage, pray the "Prayer for Marriage Restoration" that you will hear us pray for you in this episode, or pray your own prayer. 

Are you on the brink of saying "I DO" ?

In celebration of National Marriage Week (February 7 - 14), you can get the premarital e-book version of "How Do I Love Thee: Food for Thought Before You Say I DO, by DeBorrah K. Ogans for "FREE" at

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00SYF0BS4

The book helps couples evaluate their marriage readiness and answer some tough relationship questions before tying the knot.

How Do I Love Thee - Are You Ready for Marriage?

Are you on the brink of saying 'I Do'? Have you considered the solemnity of these words and the commitment they imply? 

 Ask yourselves:                           

Are We Ready for Marriage?                          

 How Compatible Are We?                           

Are we Ready for Intimacy, Commitment, The Marriage Bed?                          

What About the In-laws?                         

 Are we prepared to relinquish our selfishness?                          

Are we ready to put the other partner's well-being first?                          

Are we willing to remain faithful?                          

Do you want to wake up to this person for the rest of your life? 

Many couples are intoxicated by the pageantry of wedding planning but are eventually sobered by the silence of the morning after.  They spend months planning a ceremony while failing to spend a single hour planning for the institution itself. They have not taken the time to have candid open discussion as to what happens after the wedding. 

Planning your wedding is important, but so is planning your marriage. If you have not planned the marriage with the same intensity you used to plan the rehearsal dinner, you are building on sand, and not on a solid rock. 

In this episode, we want to invoke couples contemplating marriage to dig deeper into these questions before tying the knot. Listen to this guidance, advice and food for thought, before you say, "I DO". 

 Send us a text with your questions or comments. (https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/tex...) 

Email us: [email protected] 

Also, be sure to visit: 

Alpha 7 Ministries  (https://alpha7ministries.org/) for guidance, spiritual insight, and advice on Life & Living, Parenting & Family, Marriage & Relationships, Spiritual matters, and more. 

 Elder DeBorrah K. Ogans Amazon Author Page (https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/...)  - Review and learn more about books she has written, including:  

"Religion: How It Helps or Impairs Mental Stability". (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FS3G4NM1)   

 "Proverbs Daily Devotional - Goldmine of Spiritual Wisdom" (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BQBCY2P)  

"The Enchanting Legends of Shiloh Mansion" (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FK9YLJQ) 

There Is Nothing New Under The Sun

The Christmas season arrives with a familiar flurry of activity. Our calendars fill with parties, our homes fill with decorations, and our minds fill with gift lists and travel plans. In the joyful chaos of celebrating, we exchange greetings, share meals, and create memories. It is a time of genuine excitement and warmth, meant to bring people together. 

But in all our enthusiastic preparations and festivities, is it possible we are overlooking the very center of the holiday?  

In this episode, we share a sobering story from the East Coast, which serves as a powerful reminder of this danger.

There is a cultural trend that seeks to remove Jesus from the holiday, pushing him to the sidelines.  

Jesus is the reason for this season, and every other season. This is not merely a slogan for a coffee cup; it is the foundational truth.

"Religion: How It Helps or Impairs Mental Stability," explores the relationship between religion, particularly Christianity, and mental well-being. It examines how a personal, intimate connection with God through Jesus Christ is presented as foundational for inner peace, wholeness, and stability.

A central theme is the dual nature of religion's influence on mental well-being, depending on its practice. When practiced authentically, especially through a personal relationship with God, Christianity offers a framework for navigating life's complexities and anxieties, contributing to mental stability through a spiritual journey. Conversely, when practiced erroneously, it can significantly impair mental stability, causing confusion, anxiety, and emotional harm. At the end of each chapter is a short quiz, designed to help you remember, understand, and engage with the material rather than just passively reading it. You will learn how religion can help or impair "your" mental stability.

God has instilled in all of us a desire for relationship.  The week of Febraury 7 – Febraury 14 is celebrated as National Marriage Week, and is also the week of Valentines Day, when couples celebrate their love for one another.  

Beginning with today’s episode, we will spend the entire month of Febraury focusing on “Marriage”. We pray that you will find our episodes insightful and educational. Our intent is to  help you to build or sustain a great marriage, recognizing that God is the author of marriage. 

In this episode, we ask the question, is your marriage on the rocks, or on “The Rock”? 

Is your marriage on the rocks? Have you done all that you think that you could do, and you still are not happy?

Do you live under the same roof and barely speak or your communication is just not happening? 

Is your physical relationship few, far and in between or basically just nonexistent? Or on the other hand is your physical relationship all that you have going on? But you both are just going through the motions?

Do you jump at the opportunity to spend time apart, or enjoy the company of everyone else except one another?

When you get angry do you often resort to disrespectful name calling, foul language and go as far as physical blows?

Are you so tired of fussing and fighting, and now you just want to go your separate ways?

Do either or both of you just drink yourself under the table because you just can't take life without being under the influence of some substance, in order to function?

If your answer is "yes" to two or more of these questions, your marriage is on the rocks!

If you're not married, are you engaged or on the brink of saying 'I Do'?   If so, have you asked yourself:  

• Are We Ready For Marriage ?  • How Compatible are We?  • Are we Ready for Intimacy, Commitment and The Marriage Bed?  • What About the In-laws? Will they truly be In-laws, or Out-laws"?  

Be sure to get a copy of Elder DeBorrah’s pre-marital book, "How Do I Love Thee: Food For Thought Before You Say I Do".

Elder Randall Ogans weaves the styles of gospel, soul, and jazz together with great flair and grace. His music delights the palates of music lovers of several genres.