Episodes

We spend much of our lives keeping score. We count successes and failures. We replay regrets. We wonder if we've prayed enough, served enough, believed enough, or become enough for God to finally accept us. But what if we've been climbing a mountain God never asked us to climb? In this quiet reflection, we consider one of the most beautiful—and unsettling—truths of the Christian faith: grace cannot be earned because it has already been given through Jesus Christ. While the world teaches us to...

How do you translate the Bible into a language that has never been written down? On this episode of Moments Almanac, we follow the remarkable life of Marilyn Laszlo, a farm girl from Indiana whose childhood promise to God led her deep into the jungles of Papua New Guinea. Living among the Sepik Iwam people for twenty-five years, she helped create their first written alphabet, translated the New Testament into their language, and watched a once-isolated village embrace God's Word as their own—...

There are moments when our prayers seem to disappear into silence. Moments when we ask, "How long?" and wonder if God is listening. In this reflection on Psalm 4, we slow down and enter one of David's most peaceful prayers. From the urgency of "Answer me when I call" to the quiet confidence of "In peace I will lie down and sleep," this ancient psalm gently leads us from anxiety to worship, from striving to trust. As we meditate on David's words, we'll be reminded that God's greatest gift is n...

What if one of the greatest revolutions in church history began... with an empty chair? On July 17, 1883, Arthur Flake was born in Texas. Though his name is unfamiliar to many today, his influence has shaped generations of churches across the Southern Baptist Convention. Flake believed that churches shouldn't simply pray for growth—they should prepare for it. In this episode of Moments Almanac, we explore the life of the businessman who became a pioneer in Sunday School ministry, and discover...

Apollo 11, C.T. Studd, and the Journey That Lasts Forever On July 16, the world watched three astronauts launch toward the moon in one of history's greatest engineering achievements. But thirty-eight years earlier, on the same date, another remarkable journey quietly reached its destination. This episode of Moments Almanac contrasts the thunder of Apollo 11 with the faithful life of missionary C.T. Studd, who walked away from fame, fortune, and comfort to spend his life carrying the gospel to...

On this episode of Moments Almanac, we journey from Renaissance France to a Tennessee courtroom, with a stop at one of London's great fires, discovering what three very different events have to teach us about conviction, humility, and Christian witness. Meet John Calvin, whose lifelong pursuit of Scripture and scholarship helped shape Protestant theology. Stand in Dayton, Tennessee, as the famous Scopes Trial turns questions of faith and science into a national spectacle. Then reflect on a fire...

Discover the quiet strength found in Psalm 1. In this episode of Psalms Meditations, we reflect on the opening words of the Psalms and the beautiful image of a tree planted by streams of water. In a world that prizes speed, visibility, and constant achievement, Psalm 1 reminds us that the deepest work of God often happens beneath the surface. Together we'll consider what it means to delight in God's Word, remain rooted in Christ, and trust Him to produce fruit in its proper season. Whether yo...

On July 9, history offers two very different tragedies. In 1900, during the Boxer Rebellion, a Chinese governor lured missionaries and Chinese Christians into a place that promised safety—only to order their execution. Among them was a fifteen-year-old believer who refused to deny Christ. Eighteen years later, on the same date, two passenger trains collided at Dutchman's Curve near Nashville, Tennessee, in one of the deadliest rail disasters in American history. This time, no one intended the...

Same date, two New England moments, one hard question: can you force someone into real faith — or scare them into it? On July 8, 1663, Roger Williams's Rhode Island secured one of the first charters on earth guaranteeing full liberty of conscience. On July 8, 1741 — seventy-eight years later — Jonathan Edwards preached the most famous fire-and-brimstone sermon in American history at Enfield, Connecticut. Today's Scattered Moments Almanac holds these two side by side and asks what they actually h...

Welcome to Psalm Meditations, an ongoing series from Scattered Moments—quiet, reflective journeys into the songs of Scripture. Some passages of the Bible are meant to be studied. Others are meant to be lived. The Psalms have a remarkable way of finding us in our joy, our grief, our questions, and our hope, giving voice to prayers we didn't know how to pray. In this episode, "Hidden Rooms," we enter the breathtaking world of Psalm 139—a psalm that reminds us we are completely known and complete...

Three doors. One calendar date. Three very different choices. On July 7, Lottie Moon leaves the comfort of home to carry the light of the gospel to China. Decades later, a misunderstanding at the Marco Polo Bridge erupts into a war that will cost millions of lives. Then, in 1944, the faithful ministry of George W. Truett comes to a close after nearly half a century of opening the doors of the church to all who would come. In this episode of Moments Almanac, we explore how one date in history ...

Some passages of Scripture don't simply teach us—they find us. In this reflective episode of Scattered Moments, we journey into the haunting beauty of Psalm 42, where waves, tears, longing, and hope meet in one of the Bible's most deeply personal prayers. Through an original spoken-word meditation, we'll explore how our deepest disappointments can become the very places where we encounter God's deepest mercy. If you've ever felt overwhelmed by grief, weighed down by unanswered questions, or f...

On July 6, 1415, Jan Hus was condemned and burned at the stake for insisting that Scripture — not church councils — held final authority, a conviction that would resurface a century later in Martin Luther. On July 6, 1885, Louis Pasteur risked his reputation to give an untested rabies vaccine to a dying boy. Two men, centuries apart, staked everything on a truth they couldn't yet prove — and both truths outlived them. Today's Moments Almanac looks at what it costs to hold to the truth, and why i...

Some laws reveal the way the universe works. Others reveal the condition of the human heart. On July 5, 1687, Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica introduced the laws of motion and gravity, describing an invisible force that acts with perfect impartiality. One hundred sixty-five years later, on July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass stood before an Independence Day audience in Rochester, New York, and exposed a nation whose laws promised equality while denying it to millions. What do these two rema...

25 Ways to Share Grace Grace isn't just something we receive from God—it's something we're called to pass along. In this episode of Scattered Moments, Matt Tullos explores twenty-five simple, practical ways to show grace in everyday life. From the words we choose to the way we listen, serve, react, and walk with God, these aren't grand gestures reserved for extraordinary people. They're small, intentional acts of kindness that anyone can practice. You don't have to do all twenty-five. In fact...

Every Fourth of July, we celebrate with fireworks, flags, and familiar stories. But hidden beneath the celebration are fascinating moments that many Americans have never heard. In this special Independence Day edition of Moments Almanac, we uncover ten little-known facts about July 4, 1776—from the surprising day America actually voted for independence to the real story behind the Liberty Bell, the risks taken by the signers, and the remarkable coincidence that brought two Founding Fathers to t...

Twelve spies entered the same land. They walked the same hills, carried the same fruit, and looked at the same giants. Yet ten came back talking about fear, while two came back talking about faith. In this dramatized reading, journey into one of Scripture's most unforgettable moments from Numbers 13. With multiple voices, a touch of humor, and a timeless challenge, this episode reminds us that our perspective often shapes our future. Are you staring at the giants... or celebrating the grapes G...

On July 3, history remembers one of the Civil War's most devastating assaults—and a little-known church council that forever shaped how Christians understand grace. At Gettysburg, thousands of soldiers marched across an open field toward a stone wall they could not take. More than thirteen centuries earlier, bishops gathered in Orange, France, to answer a different question: Can we make our own way to God, or does God make the first move toward us? In this episode of Moments Almanac, those tw...

On this episode of Moments Almanac, we explore two lives forever connected by one remarkable truth: God's grace was never meant to require a translator. On July 2, a young Martin Luther was thrown to the ground by a terrifying thunderstorm that changed the course of his life. Sixteen years earlier, Thomas Cranmer was born in England, destined to become the quiet architect of worship in the English language. Though their journeys were vastly different, both men helped tear down barriers that kept...

What can a hotel Bible and a cell possibly have in common? On this episode of Scattered Moments, we visit two remarkable events that happened on July 1. In 1899, two traveling businessmen founded the Gideons with a simple vision: place God's Word where weary travelers could find it. Thirty-eight years later, on that same date, German pastor Martin Niemöller was arrested by the Gestapo for refusing to let the state rule the conscience of the church. But this isn't just a story about courage. I...

June 30: When Darkness Couldn't Silence the Music Two moments. Forty years apart. On June 30, 1934, Adolf Hitler launched the Night of the Long Knives, proving how easily evil can disguise itself as order. Forty years later, on June 30, 1974, Alberta Williams King—the mother of Martin Luther King Jr.—sat at the organ of Ebenezer Baptist Church, playing The Lord's Prayer, when a gunman opened fire. These tragedies were separated by continents, generations, and scale, yet both reveal the same a...

Bitterness rarely announces itself as bitterness. It often disguises itself as justice, hurt, or the quiet conviction that we have every right to hold on just a little longer. In this spoken-word episode of Scattered Moments, Matt Tullos explores the devastating path resentment can carve through hearts, families, friendships, and even churches—and the greater invitation Christ offers at His table. Drawing from Hebrews 12:15 and Ephesians 4:31–32, this poetic reflection reminds us that forgive...

On June 29, two very different fires tell the same story. In 1613, London's Globe Theatre—the stage that gave the world Shakespeare's greatest plays—burned to the ground in less than an hour. The building was lost, but the words escaped the flames. Centuries later, we still speak many of the phrases first heard beneath its thatched roof. Two hundred forty-eight years later, Elizabeth Barrett Browning breathed her last in Florence. Her body had been weakened by decades of illness, but her visi...

What does faithfulness look like? Sometimes it looks like carrying a bucket. Sometimes it looks like carrying a Bible. In this June 28 episode of Moments Almanac, we remember two ordinary people separated by sixteen centuries who simply picked up what the moment required. Irenaeus of Lyon defended the truth of the Gospel when false teachers threatened to reshape it, becoming the earliest Christian writer to clearly affirm Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as the four authoritative Gospels. Mary L...