WEBVTT - Is Gambling a Sin? 0:00:11.080 --> 0:00:12.960 Hey, what's up everybody, Thanks for being here. If you 0:00:12.960 --> 0:00:14.720 have a question for me on this podcast, what I 0:00:14.760 --> 0:00:17.560 do is I answer them. It could be about any subject. 0:00:18.400 --> 0:00:20.959 Uh there's They've really been all over the place, and 0:00:21.040 --> 0:00:24.919 so to email me. Send a message, send your question, 0:00:25.160 --> 0:00:29.400 hopefully about the about a phone's length to podcasts at 0:00:29.400 --> 0:00:32.360 grangersmith dot com. I'll get to those emails, we'll put 0:00:32.360 --> 0:00:34.080 them in the queue, and we'll answer them on here. 0:00:34.120 --> 0:00:36.440 I don't always have the right answers, and I don't 0:00:36.440 --> 0:00:37.800 have a bunch of notes sitting in front of me. 0:00:38.800 --> 0:00:41.199 But what I what I have learned of the of 0:00:41.280 --> 0:00:45.280 the last several years of doing this. My goal really 0:00:46.760 --> 0:00:53.080 is to get you, mister questioner, missus questioner, is to 0:00:53.080 --> 0:00:58.120 get you thinking so that you could answer your own questions. Really, 0:00:58.400 --> 0:01:00.920 I guess I guess I should say that way. My 0:01:01.000 --> 0:01:03.760 goal is not to have a podcast that we go 0:01:03.840 --> 0:01:06.680 for twenty years and just try to exhaust every single 0:01:06.720 --> 0:01:10.399 possible question that I could possibly answer. Really, the goal 0:01:10.480 --> 0:01:15.880 is if you listen consistently, I hope you do. My 0:01:15.959 --> 0:01:18.520 goal is that you go. I'm starting to see how 0:01:19.200 --> 0:01:23.000 Granger gets his answers from I like his answers. Maybe 0:01:23.040 --> 0:01:25.360 you don't like them all. Surely you don't like all 0:01:25.400 --> 0:01:28.040 my answers. That would be impossible. We all have different taste. 0:01:29.040 --> 0:01:31.800 But hey, I like a lot of the way Granger 0:01:31.800 --> 0:01:35.479 answers questions, and I'm starting to see how he gets 0:01:35.480 --> 0:01:39.480 his answers so that I could I could start answering 0:01:39.480 --> 0:01:43.720 my own questions in that same way. So it's really 0:01:44.520 --> 0:01:47.960 more of of learning how to think, or learning how 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:52.160 to think through a question. There's really even of these 0:01:52.240 --> 0:01:54.640 questions I always get to are very specific. There's only 0:01:55.040 --> 0:01:58.600 there's only seven to ten actual questions, and everything else 0:01:58.680 --> 0:02:02.440 is just caught in the details of it. Right, So 0:02:02.520 --> 0:02:05.440 let's get to the first one comes from Madison again. 0:02:05.520 --> 0:02:10.520 She emailed podcast at grangersmith dot com. And I'm kicking 0:02:10.560 --> 0:02:14.320 off with Madison's question here because this is what I'm 0:02:14.360 --> 0:02:16.040 going to kind of base this little first break on. 0:02:17.200 --> 0:02:19.120 I'll show you what I mean. She asked us, Hey, Granger, 0:02:20.040 --> 0:02:22.240 it maybe that I can't recall from reading my Bible, 0:02:22.960 --> 0:02:25.760 or that it isn't something that is within the Bible 0:02:25.840 --> 0:02:29.840 at all, But how does sports betting align with the 0:02:29.919 --> 0:02:34.240 Christian value system? I have friends within my community church 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:39.360 that partake in sports betting, and more than anything, this 0:02:39.480 --> 0:02:42.440 is just a general thought. Is gambling a sin? That's 0:02:42.480 --> 0:02:46.960 your question? God Bless Madison. So yeah, her question is basically, 0:02:47.760 --> 0:02:51.440 is gambling a sin? It's in the context of sports betting, 0:02:52.760 --> 0:02:55.359 which I don't think there's an argument there that every 0:02:55.440 --> 0:02:58.840 kind of betting, every kind of betting that there is 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:02.160 is would be under the umbrella of gambling. So you 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:04.240 don't have to be in a casino pulling a slot 0:03:04.280 --> 0:03:07.240 machine lever for it to be called gambling. You don't 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:11.359 have to be in a back alley playing poker in 0:03:11.440 --> 0:03:16.840 some kind of shambly bar for it to be considered gambling. 0:03:16.919 --> 0:03:19.960 It could be just like, oh, and I should say 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:24.000 this too, It doesn't have to be illegal. In fact, 0:03:24.040 --> 0:03:27.600 it would be weird to only consider the sin part 0:03:27.639 --> 0:03:29.320 of gambling if it is a sin. We'll get to 0:03:29.360 --> 0:03:34.720 that if it's illegal or not, Because anything that's illegal 0:03:35.120 --> 0:03:38.920 would be considered a sin at some level, because you 0:03:38.920 --> 0:03:43.360 would be going against the authority at some level. We 0:03:43.400 --> 0:03:46.200 think that's a different question. Maybe someone else could ask 0:03:46.280 --> 0:03:48.760 that specifically and we could dive into that, But specifically, 0:03:48.800 --> 0:03:52.000 what I want talking about is legal gambling. Is that 0:03:52.080 --> 0:03:56.680 a sin? And that's basically what Madison's asking. She says, 0:03:57.240 --> 0:04:00.400 there are people in her church that do it, so 0:04:00.480 --> 0:04:03.160 let's think about it. I think we should think about 0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:10.040 it in some ways, like alcohol. You know, it's a 0:04:10.040 --> 0:04:14.960 substance that you could certainly abuse. It's a substance that is, 0:04:16.040 --> 0:04:21.760 if used in the right way, legal, and yet in 0:04:21.839 --> 0:04:24.760 so many other ways it could be devastating to a 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:29.760 life with gambling. I first, I think, I think my 0:04:29.800 --> 0:04:35.360 first thought I would go to considering it's legal, and 0:04:35.440 --> 0:04:38.680 can consider this too. Maybe never mind, let me start here, 0:04:39.160 --> 0:04:41.719 as you could see, I make this up as I go. Y'all, 0:04:41.839 --> 0:04:47.159 let's let's let's start with make sure Madison that you 0:04:47.320 --> 0:04:51.560 understand that as we judge those Hey look, look, the 0:04:51.560 --> 0:04:55.719 Bible doesn't say don't judge period. In the story. The 0:04:55.760 --> 0:04:58.080 Bible says, be careful with your judging, because you'll be 0:04:58.200 --> 0:05:02.480 judged according to the same measure. So there are definitely 0:05:02.560 --> 0:05:04.880 some things that we should judge with with our brothers 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:08.560 and sisters, we should we should judge them in it like, 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:11.719 don't don't misunderstand that we don't judge. We just like 0:05:11.760 --> 0:05:14.400 turn a blind eye to everything. We have no opinion. 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:16.919 We're just like neutral robots. And we don't care what 0:05:17.000 --> 0:05:20.760 other people do around this. Don't judge. I see that 0:05:20.839 --> 0:05:24.039 sometimes on social media it's like, hey, don't judge. Well, 0:05:24.279 --> 0:05:26.479 that's not what the Bible says, that's not what Jesus says. 0:05:26.520 --> 0:05:30.239 It's it's it's the idea of don't don't judge unless 0:05:30.279 --> 0:05:32.200 you are willing to be judged according to the same 0:05:32.240 --> 0:05:35.240 measure and a lot of the same measures we want 0:05:35.279 --> 0:05:40.320 to be judged by. Okay, so let's start there and say, 0:05:40.440 --> 0:05:43.960 let's be sure that you're you're you're you're not worried 0:05:43.960 --> 0:05:45.920 about the speck in your brother's eye, and you've got 0:05:46.000 --> 0:05:48.360 a log in your own eye. Let's make sure we're 0:05:48.560 --> 0:05:51.160 removing the log in our own eye. It is or Jesus, 0:05:51.160 --> 0:05:54.599 this is Jesus's idea that make sure when we're looking 0:05:54.640 --> 0:05:56.599 at other people, like, hey, those guys are those guys 0:05:56.600 --> 0:05:59.760 are gambling, and then you're going home and you're having 0:05:59.760 --> 0:06:04.159 it too many glasses of wine at home. You know, Hey, 0:06:04.200 --> 0:06:06.280 those guys are gambling. What's wrong with those guys? As 0:06:06.320 --> 0:06:11.760 we're popping too many pain pills, Hey, those guys are gambling. 0:06:11.760 --> 0:06:16.000 As we're addicted to social media, cannot get our heads 0:06:16.000 --> 0:06:19.080 out of our screen. We're so addicted to it. Hey, 0:06:19.080 --> 0:06:21.160 those guys are gambling, and the list goes on and on. 0:06:21.520 --> 0:06:25.200 Make sure first before we say anything, let's make sure 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:27.200 we remove the log from our own eye before we 0:06:27.200 --> 0:06:32.159 look to anyone else. Okay, now, let's talk about that. 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:35.679 There's also this aspect that I don't think there's anything 0:06:35.760 --> 0:06:42.120 wrong with someone in an innocent way saying, look, I 0:06:42.279 --> 0:06:47.200 legitimately like to go and bet on a sports team. 0:06:47.400 --> 0:06:51.800 It's legal, and I use twenty bucks. I like to say, hey, 0:06:52.000 --> 0:06:54.719 I like to bet on the super Bowl every year 0:06:54.720 --> 0:07:00.479 as a tradition. Hypothetically, there's a Super Bowl tradition I 0:07:00.480 --> 0:07:02.200 have in my family. I like to put twenty bucks 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:06.440 on the team from the west of the Mississippi. I 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:08.720 don't know. I don't know why you would do it. 0:07:08.760 --> 0:07:14.000 I personally don't gamble at all, But I'm saying, let's 0:07:14.040 --> 0:07:16.360 think about the guy that goes. I like to put 0:07:16.400 --> 0:07:18.920 twenty dollars. It's a tradition I do every year on 0:07:19.000 --> 0:07:23.280 the Super Bowl, and there's no harm in it. I 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:25.400 budget twenty bucks. You know, it's not like going to 0:07:25.440 --> 0:07:27.960 break the bank or anything. It's legal. I do it 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:32.160 in a legal way. I do it in a setting 0:07:32.200 --> 0:07:34.560 of camaraderie. People around me, we do it together. Hey, 0:07:35.120 --> 0:07:39.240 nothing wrong with that, But let's dive into why it 0:07:39.320 --> 0:07:42.720 could be wrong if taken the wrong way, if seen 0:07:42.760 --> 0:07:45.520 the wrong way in the wrong setting. First of all, 0:07:47.840 --> 0:07:52.480 gambling in so many ways has an underlying issue of 0:07:52.680 --> 0:07:59.840 a love of money or greed. Right. The Bible speaks 0:08:00.400 --> 0:08:04.200 thoroughly about this. Second, our first Timothy is six ' ten. 0:08:04.840 --> 0:08:06.440 The love of money is the root of all kinds 0:08:06.480 --> 0:08:09.680 of evil. Some people eager for money have wandered from 0:08:09.680 --> 0:08:13.800 the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs or many pangs. 0:08:14.360 --> 0:08:17.880 That's tough, right, and we know this. Some people eager 0:08:17.920 --> 0:08:21.440 for money have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves 0:08:21.480 --> 0:08:25.080 with many griefs. The Bible says that Paul speaking of 0:08:25.120 --> 0:08:27.560 Timothy here in his letter, he's writing a Timothy. But 0:08:27.640 --> 0:08:30.520 I don't think we have to go. I don't know, Paul, 0:08:30.560 --> 0:08:32.280 I don't know if I agree with that. All of us, 0:08:32.800 --> 0:08:36.400 non believers, believers, all of us go. Yeah, I see that. 0:08:37.160 --> 0:08:41.160 Let's see that everywhere. What about Proverbs twenty eight twenty 0:08:42.440 --> 0:08:47.000 A faithful person will be richly blessed but one eager 0:08:47.040 --> 0:08:51.720 to get rich will not go unpunished. That's interesting. So 0:08:51.760 --> 0:08:54.679 many times gambling is that the idea of it itself 0:08:54.880 --> 0:08:59.360 just stems from a desire to quickly gain wealth. And 0:09:00.200 --> 0:09:04.960 trying to quickly gain wealth, that's reflecting a love of money, agreed, 0:09:06.720 --> 0:09:09.840 which the Bible condemns. It's dangerous. It's dangerous for you. 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:17.520 The other issue I think about is poor stewardship. Poor stewardship. 0:09:18.679 --> 0:09:24.079 Now we're called to be faithful stewarts responsible and if 0:09:24.120 --> 0:09:26.640 you're using gambling, not the guy that says I bet 0:09:26.720 --> 0:09:28.440 once a year on the super Bowl for twenty bucks. 0:09:28.480 --> 0:09:31.360 I'm not talking about that guy, but I'm saying, if 0:09:31.360 --> 0:09:34.440 this is something you're into all the time, or the 0:09:34.440 --> 0:09:37.720 people at the community church you're talking about, we would 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:41.160 have to consider something like Luke sixteen to ten that 0:09:41.240 --> 0:09:45.440 says whoever can be trusted with very little can also 0:09:45.480 --> 0:09:48.920 be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very 0:09:48.960 --> 0:09:52.320 little will also be dishonest with much. So if you 0:09:52.320 --> 0:09:56.960 have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will 0:09:56.960 --> 0:10:00.600 trust you with true riches? That's interesting. Once again, this 0:10:00.679 --> 0:10:02.920 is a thing that you don't have to go out 0:10:02.920 --> 0:10:05.440 don't believe that. You just look around you go, yeah, 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:07.600 I get it. Man, If I can't trust you with 0:10:07.600 --> 0:10:09.320 a penny, why would I ever trust you with one 0:10:09.400 --> 0:10:13.640 hundred bucks. It doesn't You don't have to be reading 0:10:13.679 --> 0:10:16.480 the Bible to just see that played out inner world 0:10:16.480 --> 0:10:20.240 around us. So the Bible is always going to call 0:10:20.280 --> 0:10:23.400 us to be responsible stewards of our resources, knowing that 0:10:23.400 --> 0:10:27.040 God gives us everything. So when you're risking money and 0:10:27.120 --> 0:10:32.440 gambling in a careless type setting, this is a way 0:10:32.280 --> 0:10:38.360 that could hurt your stewardship and could be better used 0:10:38.400 --> 0:10:42.120 in different ways. I think that's obvious. The other thing 0:10:42.160 --> 0:10:44.280 that gambling kind of brings up in my mind is 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:49.280 a lack of contentment, right, a lack of contentment. Hebrews 0:10:49.280 --> 0:10:52.120 thirteen to five says, keep your lives free from the 0:10:52.160 --> 0:10:55.040 love of money and be content with what you have 0:10:55.240 --> 0:10:59.040 because God has said I will never leave you, I'll 0:10:59.280 --> 0:11:04.920 never forsake you. And so so many times you see 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:09.400 gambling turn into something that is reflecting a discontentment in 0:11:09.840 --> 0:11:14.040 their current situation. It's like, man, I want to sit 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:15.680 at this table a little bit longer, because if I 0:11:15.679 --> 0:11:20.520 can get this and this and this, I'm gonna be happy, 0:11:21.200 --> 0:11:23.400 and that's totally going to contradict what the Bible calls 0:11:23.440 --> 0:11:32.079 to be content. Here's an important one I think about two. 0:11:32.920 --> 0:11:35.280 What is the impact of gambling on others? And this 0:11:35.320 --> 0:11:38.120 is including the guy that bets on the Super Bowl 0:11:38.120 --> 0:11:40.040 once a year. This is where I think this is 0:11:40.120 --> 0:11:44.440 dangerous for him as well. You become a stumbling box 0:11:44.559 --> 0:11:50.240 for others. Philippians two four says, don't look to your 0:11:50.240 --> 0:11:52.600 own interest, but each of you look into the interest 0:11:52.640 --> 0:11:57.400 of others. I'm paraphrasing all these and if someone is 0:11:57.440 --> 0:12:01.160 struggling with gambling, or if they're struggling with any of 0:12:01.160 --> 0:12:04.559 the things lack of contentment, poor stewardship, the love of money, 0:12:04.600 --> 0:12:06.839 and greed, if anyone around you is struggling with these 0:12:06.880 --> 0:12:09.760 and they see you going, yeah, I like to gamble 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:13.320 once a year on a football game, even if you 0:12:13.400 --> 0:12:16.120 know how to have self control about it, that might 0:12:16.160 --> 0:12:19.760 open the door to someone else that is struggling with 0:12:19.800 --> 0:12:22.880 all of these things I've listed, and that becomes dangerous 0:12:22.880 --> 0:12:25.520 for them, and so you become a stumbling block for them, 0:12:26.640 --> 0:12:31.840 and that could just have endless repercussions on their families 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:39.439 and their community. Financial strain, relational conflicts with their spouse. 0:12:41.160 --> 0:12:43.400 And so if we are truly, like the Bible says, 0:12:43.400 --> 0:12:47.199 considering others and the well being of others before our 0:12:47.240 --> 0:12:52.480 own desires, or at least equal to that, I think 0:12:52.760 --> 0:12:57.880 gambling in many ways could be a stumbling book. And finally, 0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:02.600 I think, probably most importantly, I think we need to 0:13:02.640 --> 0:13:07.920 consider this the addictive behavior of gambling itself and what 0:13:08.000 --> 0:13:09.959 it can cause. Even to the guy that says I 0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:15.240 bet once a year on the Super Bowl, there is 0:13:15.280 --> 0:13:19.040 a sense, and we see this play out, that gambling 0:13:19.160 --> 0:13:24.680 becomes addictive, and there are certainly certain personalities that it's 0:13:24.679 --> 0:13:33.000 more addictive too. So maybe I could use myself as 0:13:33.040 --> 0:13:36.400 an example when it comes to this stuff. I don't 0:13:36.440 --> 0:13:41.679 personally have a super addictive personality, but my brother Tyler does. 0:13:42.280 --> 0:13:45.920 He recognizes that and I recognize it. So that means 0:13:46.280 --> 0:13:49.640 Tyler has to be more careful around things that are 0:13:50.880 --> 0:13:55.800 traditionally addictive to other humans. If something has been traditionally 0:13:55.840 --> 0:14:00.200 addictive to people, Tyler's going to fall into it, not 0:14:00.280 --> 0:14:03.000 due to some extent, but not to the extent of him. 0:14:03.200 --> 0:14:05.840 Meaning there's nothing there's nothing good or bad about me 0:14:05.960 --> 0:14:09.160 or Tyler in that aspect, except for this, just different personalities, 0:14:10.240 --> 0:14:13.559 and so knowing that gambling is one of these things 0:14:13.640 --> 0:14:17.760 that easily can become addictive, we need to consider that 0:14:18.400 --> 0:14:22.760 when we're considering if gambling is a sin. One Corinthian 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:26.560 six twelve says, Paul's talking here. I have the right 0:14:26.600 --> 0:14:30.160 to say anything you say, but not everything is beneficial. 0:14:30.400 --> 0:14:32.720 I have the right to do anything, but I will 0:14:32.720 --> 0:14:36.080 not be mastered by anything. Paul says. I will not 0:14:36.280 --> 0:14:40.440 be mastered by anything. He's saying in another way, I'm 0:14:40.480 --> 0:14:44.760 not going to be addicted to something. And that could 0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:48.160 be anything. It could be anything in life that masters you. 0:14:48.240 --> 0:14:52.200 It could be anxiety, or it could be poorn, It 0:14:52.240 --> 0:14:58.000 could be Instagram, or could be sports betting. There's there's 0:14:58.200 --> 0:15:00.760 an endless thing we can go through here. There's endless 0:15:00.760 --> 0:15:05.560 things that you could be mastered by that I could 0:15:05.560 --> 0:15:10.240 be mastered by. An addiction to relationships like I'm online 0:15:10.320 --> 0:15:13.840 dating could be that could master you. Trying to be 0:15:13.880 --> 0:15:16.520 a good father, you know, that could be something that 0:15:16.560 --> 0:15:20.280 you become obsessive over and you can't stop thinking about it. 0:15:20.280 --> 0:15:23.080 You can't stop working to be a good father. Something 0:15:23.120 --> 0:15:26.440 that has such good intentions could could be something that 0:15:26.560 --> 0:15:31.880 ends up mastering you. So it's not just cigarettes or opioids. 0:15:32.600 --> 0:15:36.080 It could be something that inherently is good, but it 0:15:36.080 --> 0:15:41.160 becomes a master over you. An obsession, an addiction, and 0:15:41.240 --> 0:15:44.040 gambling is for sure in that category. You don't have 0:15:44.080 --> 0:15:47.240 to argue that. No one's gonna argue that whatever it 0:15:47.360 --> 0:15:52.720 is about that neurologically it draws certain people in, if 0:15:52.760 --> 0:15:57.120 not everyone, at some level, there's just something about it 0:15:57.160 --> 0:15:59.440 that draws you in. And the Bible says don't be 0:15:59.560 --> 0:16:06.520 mastered by anything. And so this also goes to my 0:16:06.640 --> 0:16:11.160 fourth point, the impact on others. If others could be 0:16:11.200 --> 0:16:15.120 more addictive than you to certain things and you're doing 0:16:15.200 --> 0:16:17.760 it and you have total self control over it, and 0:16:17.800 --> 0:16:20.120 someone else sees you and they say, I want to 0:16:20.120 --> 0:16:22.800 do what he's doing or she's doing. I'm gonna try 0:16:22.840 --> 0:16:24.920 it out a little bit, and as soon as they do, 0:16:24.960 --> 0:16:28.040 they realize they're addicted, not like the first person was. 0:16:28.360 --> 0:16:30.720 That's a problem, and you just cause your brother to stumble. 0:16:34.360 --> 0:16:36.400 So I hope when you hear these things, I hope, 0:16:36.920 --> 0:16:39.760 I hope you can come to it a conclusion. You're 0:16:40.240 --> 0:16:42.720 like I said at the beginning, where I don't necessarily 0:16:42.720 --> 0:16:44.400 want to give you an answer as much as I 0:16:44.440 --> 0:16:47.680 want to help you think through things, and then when 0:16:47.680 --> 0:16:50.400 you think of all that and you go, yeah, it's 0:16:50.400 --> 0:16:54.040 probably not worth it, right, It's probably not worth it. 0:16:54.400 --> 0:16:58.760 I personally have played music in so many casinos in 0:16:58.760 --> 0:17:03.680 my life, so many I could never count how many 0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:05.960 casinos I've been and how many places in the world 0:17:06.040 --> 0:17:11.840 I've been in some kind of casino atmosphere. I have zero, 0:17:14.760 --> 0:17:18.440 zero desire at all to gamble. I just don't. I 0:17:18.920 --> 0:17:22.840 don't like it if I lose twenty dollars at a 0:17:22.840 --> 0:17:26.359 blackjack table, I instantly think about what that twenty dollars 0:17:26.400 --> 0:17:29.600 could have bought, Like man, that could have been half 0:17:29.640 --> 0:17:33.360 of a really, really nice stake, and in my mind 0:17:33.400 --> 0:17:36.120 I can't get over that. I know that there are 0:17:36.200 --> 0:17:39.520 definitely people that do it purely out of entertainment, and 0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:43.679 to those people, I say, Okay, consider the things that 0:17:43.720 --> 0:17:50.159 I've said here on this podcast, and to the original email, 0:17:51.000 --> 0:17:56.360 I say, hey, Madison, let's make sure that you're prepared 0:17:56.359 --> 0:18:01.919 to be judged on the same Measure'll move on. I 0:18:01.920 --> 0:18:04.800 wish y'all could have seen the very first grangersmith dot com. 0:18:05.040 --> 0:18:08.720 It was like two thousand and one, two thousand and two. 0:18:09.119 --> 0:18:11.199 I remember it said grangersmith dot com. You go there. 0:18:11.280 --> 0:18:13.439 It has like a little Texas flag, like blowing in 0:18:13.480 --> 0:18:16.280 the wind, but it was like real, real bad quality, 0:18:16.800 --> 0:18:19.879 and it had like my tour dates and a couple 0:18:19.920 --> 0:18:22.640 other things. I definitely didn't sell anything. I didn't sell 0:18:22.640 --> 0:18:24.640 a T shirt or a hat. That didn't come till 0:18:24.680 --> 0:18:28.440 about two thousand and five. And my brother Tyler helped 0:18:28.480 --> 0:18:30.040 me with that. He's been with me every since as 0:18:30.080 --> 0:18:32.919 my manager, and we started selling. We noticed quickly that 0:18:33.040 --> 0:18:36.000 selling is pretty hard online because you know, you got 0:18:36.000 --> 0:18:38.000 to have a little icon where they click the credit 0:18:38.040 --> 0:18:40.159 card thing, and then you got to figure out a 0:18:40.200 --> 0:18:43.080 back end way that they could get their credit card charged. 0:18:43.080 --> 0:18:45.560 And we just eventually we just gave it all to Shopify. 0:18:46.440 --> 0:18:48.160 And I think a lot of businesses do the same. 0:18:48.280 --> 0:18:51.359 We are better because it's so easy to sell things 0:18:51.480 --> 0:18:55.560 with Shopify. Now, what is Shopify. It's a global commerce 0:18:55.600 --> 0:18:57.880 platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. 0:18:58.240 --> 0:19:00.840 Whether you're just launching your website with the Texas flag 0:19:01.320 --> 0:19:04.480 or you're doing a lot of big numbers. Shopify is 0:19:04.520 --> 0:19:07.119 there to help you grow. It doesn't matter what you're selling, 0:19:07.160 --> 0:19:11.800 whatever widget or ee apparel. Shopify helps you sell everywhere, 0:19:11.800 --> 0:19:14.240 from their all in one e commerce platform to their 0:19:14.280 --> 0:19:18.000 in person pos system. Wherever or whatever you're selling, Shopify 0:19:18.040 --> 0:19:20.960 has got you covered, and they helped turn browsers into 0:19:20.960 --> 0:19:24.120 buyers with their internet's best converting checkout that's thirty six 0:19:24.160 --> 0:19:27.160 percent better on average compared to other leading commerce platforms. 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:29.600 You could also sell more with less effort thanks to 0:19:29.600 --> 0:19:32.960 shopify Magic, your AI powered all star. Hey, true story. 0:19:33.000 --> 0:19:34.879 I remember one time we got away from Shopify to 0:19:34.920 --> 0:19:39.040 go with a local commerce platform, and I mean it 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:41.880 was horrible. We lost a lot of numbers, we lost 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:45.720 a lot of fans that were impatient with the checkout system, 0:19:45.880 --> 0:19:47.880 and then we went back to Shopify. Hey, if you've 0:19:47.920 --> 0:19:51.360 got a small business or a large business, join us 0:19:51.400 --> 0:19:53.720 like ten percent of all e commerce platforms in the 0:19:53.720 --> 0:19:57.000 whole US and go to Shopify. Also one hundred and 0:19:57.040 --> 0:19:59.920 seventy five countries around the world. That's because businesses a 0:20:00.080 --> 0:20:02.840 around the world use Shopify. If you've got a business 0:20:03.119 --> 0:20:05.360 large or small, and you sell things on a website, 0:20:05.800 --> 0:20:08.480 listen sign up for a one dollar per month trial 0:20:08.480 --> 0:20:11.720 period at shopify dot com. Slash Granger all lowercase, go 0:20:11.800 --> 0:20:14.800 to shopify dot com slash granger right now to grow 0:20:14.840 --> 0:20:18.000 your business no matter what stage you're in shopify dot 0:20:18.040 --> 0:20:21.639 com slash granger. Hey, if you want to get a 0:20:21.640 --> 0:20:24.879 hold of me, go to cameo dot com slash granger Smith. 0:20:25.160 --> 0:20:27.600 You will find me there and from there I could 0:20:27.840 --> 0:20:30.679 build you a video message. I get your notes and 0:20:30.720 --> 0:20:33.760 what you want me to say, like happy birthday, happy anniversary, 0:20:33.800 --> 0:20:38.000 a word of encouragement, congratulations, good job on the graduation, 0:20:38.600 --> 0:20:40.880 or why did you not make graduation? Whatever you want 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:43.080 me to say. I'll read those notes and I pull 0:20:43.080 --> 0:20:45.840 out my phone and I record a video message and 0:20:45.920 --> 0:20:48.240 I say whatever you need me to say to whoever 0:20:48.280 --> 0:20:50.160 you need me to say it too, and I send 0:20:50.160 --> 0:20:52.639 it right back to you. It's super simple. It's a 0:20:52.640 --> 0:20:55.040 great gift for the person that you don't know what 0:20:55.119 --> 0:20:57.800 to buy for. Again, go to Cameo c am eo 0:20:57.960 --> 0:21:02.680 dot com slash grangers. Next question comes from Jacob once again. 0:21:02.800 --> 0:21:06.680 Jacob emailed podcast at grangersmith dot com and you can too. 0:21:06.960 --> 0:21:09.040 Jacob says, Hey, my name is Jacob. I've got a 0:21:09.040 --> 0:21:11.760 brief backstory. I met my wife in high school and 0:21:11.840 --> 0:21:14.480 we started dating after graduation, and then I shipped off 0:21:14.960 --> 0:21:19.040 to the Air Force BMT. Two months later. We spent 0:21:19.119 --> 0:21:21.919 four months four years excuse me long distance. After that, 0:21:22.000 --> 0:21:24.560 I was stationed in Georgia while she was back home 0:21:24.600 --> 0:21:28.199 in Ohio going to college, and once she graduated, she 0:21:28.320 --> 0:21:32.639 moved down with me. We're currently living in Virginia. We 0:21:32.760 --> 0:21:35.120 have a one year old son together, and we are 0:21:35.240 --> 0:21:39.359 constantly fighting. I know I'm not perfect. I make mistakes, 0:21:39.359 --> 0:21:41.760 but every time I make a mistake, she jumps to 0:21:41.880 --> 0:21:47.600 yelling and screaming at me. I get so defensive and 0:21:47.680 --> 0:21:50.520 it just rises from there. I start to see this 0:21:50.640 --> 0:21:53.879 marriage not working out. But I know that the Bible 0:21:53.920 --> 0:21:57.200 says that divorce is only okay if there's been cheating involved. 0:21:57.880 --> 0:22:00.280 I'm just losing hope in this relationship, and she is too. 0:22:00.560 --> 0:22:03.480 We're tired of fighting and we don't want our son 0:22:03.520 --> 0:22:06.240 in the middle of it. Any advice prayers would be amazing. 0:22:06.280 --> 0:22:10.200 Thanks yee, Jacob, Jacob, I'm so sorry, brother. I hate 0:22:10.200 --> 0:22:16.399 to see this for you, and I know this is 0:22:16.440 --> 0:22:19.320 this is a tough spot. I'm gonna I'm gonna do 0:22:19.359 --> 0:22:23.760 some math here. Four years Let's see you date. You 0:22:23.840 --> 0:22:29.919 dated in high school four years long distance? Did you 0:22:29.920 --> 0:22:34.560 say when you get married. I don't know. I don't know. 0:22:34.600 --> 0:22:39.119 I think I'm guessing. We're talking about five years marriage 0:22:39.119 --> 0:22:42.199 here and a one year old son together, constantly fighting. 0:22:45.560 --> 0:22:47.639 What I want to talk about here? I could get 0:22:47.680 --> 0:22:51.440 into the to the nitty gritty really of a relationship, 0:22:52.320 --> 0:22:54.480 and I have before on this podcast, and I don't. 0:22:54.520 --> 0:22:57.840 I don't think that's what you're looking for. I think 0:22:57.840 --> 0:23:00.320 you're asking me, Hey, is it okay if I just 0:23:00.320 --> 0:23:02.480 divorce this woman? I think that's basically what you're saying. 0:23:02.560 --> 0:23:05.640 I don't. I don't see that there's a like a 0:23:05.640 --> 0:23:11.240 a need or desire to reconcile the relationship. I think 0:23:11.280 --> 0:23:13.200 you're more or less you're just like, hey, we fight. 0:23:13.960 --> 0:23:15.960 I'm tired of it. She's tired of it. I don't 0:23:15.960 --> 0:23:19.080 want my son seeing this. I want out. But I 0:23:19.119 --> 0:23:23.399 have one problem, Granger. The Bible says that it's not 0:23:23.440 --> 0:23:26.879 good to get a divorce. So what am I going 0:23:26.960 --> 0:23:30.240 to do? I'm losing hope here. In fact, it sounds 0:23:30.240 --> 0:23:31.760 like Jacob, it sounds like you're saying, if it wasn't 0:23:31.800 --> 0:23:34.600 for the Bible, I'd just be out. It's what everyone 0:23:34.640 --> 0:23:36.800 else does, right, so the whole world does. It seems 0:23:36.840 --> 0:23:41.080 like so what I want to do, Jacob, I think 0:23:41.080 --> 0:23:44.720 this is so important. Instead of instead of me getting 0:23:44.720 --> 0:23:47.480 into the nitty gritty of your relationship, because honestly, I 0:23:47.520 --> 0:23:52.720 just don't know that much about it. Besides, you make 0:23:52.760 --> 0:23:57.760 mistakes and she jumps you. I don't know. I want 0:23:57.800 --> 0:24:03.080 to talk about what it means about being a Christian 0:24:03.720 --> 0:24:08.320 and dealing with divorce. I think this is so often 0:24:08.400 --> 0:24:15.960 misunderstood and not talked about, but really, traditionally, this is 0:24:15.960 --> 0:24:17.880 how it should be, and this is how it has been, 0:24:17.920 --> 0:24:19.920 and this is what I want you to think about. 0:24:21.720 --> 0:24:26.040 I'm assuming. I'm just assuming, forgive me if I'm wrong. 0:24:26.480 --> 0:24:32.000 I'm assuming you're not in a meaningful relationship with the church, 0:24:33.600 --> 0:24:39.840 a good, healthy church that has a proportionate amount of 0:24:39.880 --> 0:24:46.200 pastors to the amount of congregates or members or people 0:24:46.200 --> 0:24:52.600 that attend, so that if there were problems in the congregation, 0:24:53.400 --> 0:24:56.840