Introducing The Deep Dish

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Courtney Doctor
It’s just a good question to ask yourself, What characterizes your thoughts and what characterizes your conversations?

Melissa Kruger
Yeah, when you had a good conversation with someone, you’re chewing on it later. We’re hoping to have those here.

Melissa Kruger
Hi friends. My name is Melissa Kruger, and I am here with my good friend, and I’m really happy to get to say this. And co host Courtney doctor and we are so excited to introduce you to our new podcast, the deep dish Courtney. This is something we’ve been dreaming about for a long time. We’ve been talking about it, thinking about it. Can you tell us a little bit about why it’s called the deep dish? What are we going to do here? Do you

Courtney Doctor
want the spiritual answer or the less than spiritual answer? They’re both real answers, but you know, one of them just sounds I’ll start with the spiritual one. The reality is you and I, because this is why we’ve been dreaming about this. We recognize that in any relationship that we have, they can be relationships at home or at school or at work or your neighborhood. The majority of our conversations, if we start paying attention to what we’re talking about, the majority of our conversations focus on like what we’re doing that day. My husband and I laugh all the time. It’s like we download our schedules multiple times a day to each other. So we talk a lot about what we’re, you know, about to do, or what we want to do. We might talk about, you know, the show we just watched, or you and I like to talk about the funny reels that we’ve seen on social media, and pass those back and forth. But, but the other thing, I mean, the the important thing that you and I recognize is that it’s really important that we are intentionally having conversations that focus on the gospel and how the gospel impacts, really everything, everything that we do. And so I do think in real life, you and I are super intentional about doing that with each other, that we talk about how something we’re going through, or something we’re thinking about, or even something funny we’re talking about, how does the gospel impact that? And so we wanted to create a space where we could have what we’re calling deep conversations about deep truths, meaning that we’re talking about the deep truths of the gospel and how they actually just impact the the moments of our days. And so what we wanted to do was invite people into that, and then also kind of spark ideas on how other people can incorporate these kind of conversations in their real life friendships. So that’s what we’re doing. But what’s the less than I

Melissa Kruger
was like, that sounds super spiritual. I know. I know, where’s the name really from. Come on, give us the real scoop.

Courtney Doctor
Well, you and I eat our fair share of deep dish pizza. We love deep dish pizza. We make sure that every time we’re together in real life, we find some place with deep dish pizza. We have been mailed frozen deep dish pizzas, which we’re always like, that’s always a good gift, right? Feel free anybody that wants we’re looking

Melissa Kruger
for a deep dish sponsor just to fill our deep dish pizza will always be what unites us in deep ways. But I think so often when we hear the term going deep with one another. We, especially as women, we think, Oh, we’re going to be really vulnerable with one another. And that’s kind of where we we move toward one another. And I think one thing you and I have experienced through our friendship, and even just through different friendships that we have with people, is that you actually go deeper with people when you’re focused on some other object, not just one another. And so, I mean, I can think of when we were writing salvation stories. What’s that name? You’re

Speaker 1
writing this Bible study one time that I can’t remember what it’s called yet, that

Melissa Kruger
and we would just, we would be Vox Okay, boxing is an app that we will talk about regularly. So let’s just introduce Voxer to them as a walk sponsor

Courtney Doctor
us too. Yeah, they love the Voxer app.

Melissa Kruger
Every day I’m eating my turkey sandwich, I need to tell Courtney, so I Voxer. It’s just a walkie talkie app, and we would just be talking though about, oh my goodness, this connection we see in Scripture, and to have someone else to get excited about that. And you know, when you’re just reading the Word and you’re seeing something in Exodus that connects to John, and you need to tell someone about it. And actually, that grows a friendship. I think that grows relationships more than anything else, even more than deep dish pizza, somehow even more

Courtney Doctor
than deep dish pizza. But the reality is, right. I do think we’re living in a moment where authenticity and vulnerability are very prized, and I agree. I think that we’re supposed to live vulnerable and obviously authentic lives, consistency between who we are. What we say, what we believe, how we act, but they’re not the end goal. Are they? They actually serve the greater goal that you’re talking about, which is when I am authentic and vulnerable with my friends and my family and those around me, which is how I should be living. It allows them to actually speak gospel truths into my life in a way that is much more on target. And so yes, authenticity and vulnerability, but not just that’s not the end game, is it? The end game is, is knowing how the Gospel speaks into into all those areas. And so we need friends that can, that are willing to step into that space.

Melissa Kruger
That’s right. And I think Daniel 220 I was looking this up yesterday, and this is what he said, Blessed be the Name of God, forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons. He removes kings and sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and hidden things. He knows what is in the darkness and the light dwells with him. And what, what I think we have just found through walking with the Lord for a long time, being in women’s ministry for a long time, is that, you know, we can go to all these places or even people searching for wisdom, but it’s really God revealing it. So as we look to him, and I can say, I mean, I think you would say this too, since becoming a Christian, I’ve been blessed to always be in a community who’s seeking God together. And so you know it it just through our lives as Christians, whether it’s been a Bible study, whether it’s been accountability groups, it’s been seeking the Lord in that knowing that he reveals the wisdom, and he often does that as we’re having conversations together about his Exactly.

Courtney Doctor
That’s what I was thinking when you were reading that, like he reveals these deep and hidden things in his word, but then sometimes they’re revealed to us through the context of having these conversations, like you were saying when we would Vox about, Oh, guess what? I saw this connection between John and and Exodus and yeah, and

Melissa Kruger
then there’s an extra connection that’s made when someone adds to this. So it’s, it’s this beautiful way, I think the Spirit works in in community with God’s people. It’s like, yes, the word is the basis. It’s what’s revealing, but it’s happening somehow, as we’re all talking together, and so that’s what we’re hoping to do, and also just to live out Philippians, four, eight, and this is what it says. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, what is whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy. Think about such things. And I know, you know, I can think about a lot of junk as I go through my day. I mean, I can just, I’m bored, okay, I’m gonna scroll, you know, or whatever, and then I’m like, on Amazon, and now I need this new product or whatever, you know, I can set my mind on lesser things. And I think what we’re hoping to create here, even for ourselves, is a place to think on deeper things, to think about what is good and right and true. How does what we think about affect what we talk about?

Courtney Doctor
Oh, I mean, it’s a direct correlation. And I think we can even look at certain friend groups and say, what are those conversations like? What characterizes those conversations? Because different friend groups bring out different things in us, and I was when I was growing up, so I grew up in a house that had a phone desk in the kitchen. I don’t think they do those anymore, because we don’t really have like, phones in the house, right? But we had a desk that was poured to a what a course, for sure, I we actually had rotary dial, because we lived kind of out of the city, but we had a phone desk, so an entire, like piece of furniture dedicated to sit, you know, with the phone book and the and there was a a cork board, like at the on the wall at The back of the phone desk. And my mom would, who still cuts out newspaper articles, cut out this little news, these

Melissa Kruger
things are like ancient newspaper phone book, no, sorry, because you

Courtney Doctor
know what, relate

Unknown Speaker
to people,

Courtney Doctor
and we like it. We like it. Yeah,

Speaker 1
artifacts of artifacts.

Courtney Doctor
Sorry, Mom, if you’re listening to this, they are artifacts. So she cut out this little square from, you know, maybe a advice column and and thumb tacked it to the bulletin board. So I spent a lot of time at that phone desk as a teenager. So I read this little piece of newspaper cut out, clipping over and over and over. And this is what it said. And I don’t, you know, there’s some things I would disagree, but the general premise is so true. So this is what it said. Little People talk about other people. Average people talk about things, and great people talk about ideas. And it was even. Shaping as a child to ponder, you know, what do I talk about? What do I talk about? Mostly, sort of that, that question of, What am I characterized by? And so what I’m thinking is going to directly be revealed, you know, for out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. And so it’s going to be directly revealed in my words, our words just reveal what’s going on in our heart and our mind. And so it’s just a good question to ask yourself, What characterizes your thoughts and what characterizes your conversations? Yeah,

Melissa Kruger
I can remember one time hearing a speaker. He was actually speaking on Romans eight, one of I know our both of our favorite passages, one of your favorite books, and and, and he said, What do you think about when you’re not thinking? And I remember like, So, where does your brain just go? What are you pondering as you’re just walking, you know, throughout your day? And it was really, it was actually very revealing. What am I thinking about when I’m not thinking, Where do I go? And so I do hope. I mean, one of my real hopes with these conversations is that they’re going to make our mind go to, Oh, yeah. What do I what do I think about this, God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility? What do I think about that? Like, as as I’m going about my way, I’m hoping that even just us having these conversations, that I’ll be chewing on, you know, when you’ve had a good conversation with someone, you’re chewing on it later and you’re thinking, huh, I gotta think about that differently. I think that’s, you know, we’re hoping to have those here, and that these will last well past the 30 to 40 minutes that we are talking but that they’re going to help us think about what we’re thinking. And I love

Courtney Doctor
that. That’s exactly it. That’s exactly it. Well, okay, why don’t you give us a little bit of a sneak peek, then on some of the conversations that we’re going to be having just in our first season that we hope you all join us for. I know

Melissa Kruger
it’s, let me just say, come for the other people. Don’t come for us. I mean, we’ve got great people coming on. Two people who I’m super excited to have on here are Vanessa Hawkins and Jen Wilkin. We’re going to be talking with them about mentoring and discipleship. And I love getting to talk the four of us. I love the four of us anytime we get to talk together, but we all, in the past, worked in the local church. Vanessa still working in the local church, and I am, you know, I’m just really excited to see how that shaped how we all view discipleship and mentoring, because that comes up in any women’s ministry or any church context. How do we disciple the next generation? We’ll also be talking to Elizabeth Woodson. I’m super excited to talk with her, because she has written a book on contentment, and that’s a favorite topic of mine. So I’m looking forward to

Courtney Doctor
us getting to you’ve written a book on it too. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Melissa Kruger
And I need to, like, read more books on it, so, like, keep sending them to me. One of our favorites we’re going to get to talk to is Nancy Guthrie, and she has written multiple books on prayer. So that is something I think we all want to not just think about more, but we want to do more and help help with that. You and I are going to have a conversation on a nice, light topic, God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. So tell me about Yeah, well, we’ll have to have that conversation. I’m looking forward to that. Yeah, I’m going to have a conversation on parenting teens with Ruth Cho Simons and Sandy Taylor, two friends. Sandy is actually, she is. She works with teens in New York. She’s a counselor, and Ruth is raising six boys right now, so we’ve got a lot of teens among us

Courtney Doctor
to say about it. Yeah, yeah, that’ll be it’s

Melissa Kruger
a fun, fun group to get to talk. And they have, Sandy has all girls, Ruth has all boys, and I’ve got a little bit of each one person I’m really looking forward to talking to is our colleague, co worker, Anne westrate, and we are going to talk about one of our favorite topics, which is the working genius. And so yeah, these are just a smattering of the things we’re going to talk about. Any other conversations you’re excited about? Courtney? Oh,

Courtney Doctor
I’m excited about all of them. We do have some amazing people joining us, and I think just covering a wide variety of topics, because, like we said at the beginning, we want to talk about how the Bible intersects and impacts and informs every, every area of our lives. And so we’re, we’re going to cover the gamut, just like we do in real life. This is, this is kind of real time conversations. And so we’re going to be talking to a lot of great people about, hopefully, a lot of great things. We

Melissa Kruger
hope that you’re going to join us for these conversations. If you can go and subscribe right now to the deep dish from the gospel coalition, it’ll help other people find it. It will also help you find it again, because if you’re like me, I get lost and say, which podcast Am I looking for today? So if you subscribe to it, you’ll be able to find us easily. And we really do hope that you will join us for these conversations as we think together on whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable. That’s what we’re hoping to do thanks for joining us.