Bluestem Project

In an instant our beliefs can be challenged. Medical challenges and disability can force us to to wonder "do I really believe this?" Extensive and deep roots in the one, true God enable us to endure, sustain, and even thrive amidst life's greatest hardships. Learn more about the heart behind the Bluestem Project and meet your hosts, husband and wife, Brandon and Amy Smith.

"Why is this happening?" "Why me?" "Why now?"As people we are made with an intrinsic awareness that there's something bigger going on, something beyond ourselves and it often reveals itself when we are thrust into medical hardships. As we face challenges we long to use our pain in order to impact beyond ourselves. Join us as we discuss meaning and purpose in our suffering - the things we can control.

God is at work in all things. We live under an illusion of control, when really we control so little. God's glory and goodness is what all things point to, whether we choose to acknowledge that truth or not. In all things, our circumstances are opportunities to demonstrate His worthiness to the world. We are wired for meaning and purpose, so what is the meaning and purpose behind medical hardship and disability? How can this be beautiful? How can this bring Him glory? How can this be for my good?

Joy is knowing, trusting, and delighting in God. It is deep and can be sustained beyond circumstances, but how? Scripture is chalk full of passages on joy as a command and a work of His Spirit within his children. So how does this really work itself out when life feels impossible?

What happens after death? How can we be certain? Why does out view of what happens after death matter? Christianity says we are eternal beings with the vast majority of our eternal life being spent beyond our time on earth as we know it. What we believe about this Jesus is crucial and makes all the difference for what we can anticipate for life after death.

A hospital bill for thousands of dollars. A second opinion that confirms a bleak prognosis. A sudden and drastic change to life as you know it from an accident. A surgery that didn't go as planned. A loss of a loved one.How can gratitude be possible when the weight of the world seems to be crushing you? Hear from our guest, Chaplain Bruce Nelson, as he shares how grief can be a catalyst for gratitude.

Grieving and suffering people are fragile. Even with our best intensions we have all stuck our foot in our mouths. We've said stupid things or we've been on the receiving end of stupid things said to us. So we're going there. We are jumping into the awkward for the sake of suffering people. Join us as we navigate the ditches we can all err on either side of the road of someone journeying through medical hardship, loss of a loved one, or health complications as we look to the gospel for our ultimate source of wisdom and hope along the way.

Emotions are deep and unknown, they can even be complete chaos. It can be challenging and weighty to "enter in" with those enduring heavy burdens. Yet we must get over ourselves and enter in. We must put ourselves second. But we also caution against over empathizing. How do we find the balance and what does the Bible say?

As a Division 1 college athlete, Hunter Pinke was riding high on what the world raves as "having it all." But a skiing accident causes this D1 tight-end to suffer a severe spinal cord injury resulting in severe paralysis which ultimately leaves him wondering "why me" to "why NOT me?" Hunter's story is a story of great loss and an even greater hope. His mountaintop miracle is one that is sure to encourage you as he is faced with a sudden and drastic change to life as he knew it.

Individuals and families caring for individuals with special needs feel the depths of loneliness to a high degree. Covid culture has surfaced this reality for even more people, exposing and exaggerating how no one is a stranger to loneliness. Jesus was no stranger to loneliness, either. He experienced and endured the deepest level of loneliness SO THAT you and I might not have to. Join the conversation as we discuss how real loneliness is and how God helps us in our loneliness.

"Gather"A simple word that carries much weight. A word so esteemed it's everywhere in home decor and is especially desired when holidays are here. A deep, God-given longing to come together with loved ones to celebrate and feast. So what happens when you aren't able to be together? How should we handle the disappointment that holidays can't be what we long for them to be? Where do we look when holidays seem to reveal more pain than thanksgiving? As we crave connection and celebration here and now, let us remember in Christ the marriage feast of the lamb is an ultimate celebration coming.

In this emotional and pain-filled story of grief and tragedy from the unexpected loss of a child we hear about a peace that surpasses all understanding. The Junglings' story is one filled with decisions no parent ever imagines having to make, a rollercoaster of emotions that reveal themselves in times of loss, and a sure and steady hope that only makes sense in Christ. Listen in to hear how they have been able to come to the conclusions that God allows what He hates to accomplish what He loves.

How you and I choose to live, how we react to situations reveals what we believe at the deepest level. Not much else in life surfaces what we believe at the deepest level than hardship. Hardship can be a crucible that often surfaces the "where is God when bad things happen?" on a personal level. Wrestling with this question can either deepen one's faith in the Lord or pull us away if we are misguided. There are several misbeliefs that we must caution against when God feels distant so as not to allow our feelings to steamroll facts and faith. We must turn to scripture a fight for the truth of who God is to engage with this real question in order to see our faith deepen.

Why do bad things happen to good people? Why doesn't God stop or end evil and suffering right now? When we wrestle with these questions we are forced to wrestle with truly believing God for who He is. He is all loving. He is all powerful. He is omniscient. Join in on the philosophical argument to sift through some of these challenging questions many of us find our minds wandering to at some point in life but especially when we are faced with hard things in our own lives personally.

Can you ever be "ready" to endure the loss of a loved one? We would suggest not, but there are ways we can be better prepared. When we look to certain passages of scripture, such as the whole of Job's story, we can see that the authors of scripture are not far removed from this kind of heartache from loss. Job 1:21 says "...the Lord gave and takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord." How can the depth of a hurting heart from death respond in praise?We believe heart work is hard work and always worth it. Join Brandon as he walks through practices to help prepare your heart for the death of a loved one.

Like a marathon, or even an ultra marathon, training can make things more bearable. The preparing for and certainly the aftermath of the loss of a child is a marathon. You may never be ready but possibly better prepared. A significant aspect to consider, is that God himself had a son die so he knows. He understands in His sovereignty but also experientially as a father, what it is to lose a child. He knows. He is safe to bring all of our big emotions to and He is trustworthy with all of our hearts. Join us as we talk through what can often be ambiguous, unnatural, and incredibly uncomfortable: preparing for the death of a child.

After the tragic loss of his son, Troy shares vulnerably and honestly about the reality of grief being a life-long process stating "we grieve deeply because we love deeply." Listen in to be encouraged as Troy takes us on a journey to see God's sweet sovereign hand in details even before his shocking loss and how he responded to a very piercing question, "Am I going to allow this pain to make me better or bitter?" Troy and his wife, Jana, have a heart for the hurting and are passionate about connecting with others through a ministry to bereaved parents - While We're Waiting. If you or someone you know has lost a child, we would encourage you to get connected to this ministry. https://whilewerewaiting.org/

Rest is one of the most neglected concepts to live out. It can seem elusive, unnecessary, or even impossible to find rest. So how can we look to God to provide this rest? Can He truly provide physical, spiritual, emotional rest for our weary souls?Join the conversation as Brandon takes us from Old Testament to New Testament to hear how God takes care of His people by graciously and generously providing for their needs, including rest. Understand how you can have access to enter eternal spiritual rest no matter what life's circumstances you find yourself in.

There are countless times along the journey in medical hardship and special needs that can feel like we are sprinting a marathon. How are we to endure as the journey wages on?Might we find our hope in Christ alone. May his life, of one who endured much, be cause for our own endurance. He alone endows our suffering with transcendent meaning and purpose. Let us fix our eyes on His reward (looking through our hardship) to future joy. Join the conversation as Brandon delves into a series on Considering Jesus - weighing all the hardship he endured in order to put our own hardships in perspective of eternity and find comfort in the one who is acquainted with hardship himself.

Misunderstood. Misperceived. Mislabeled.How painful it is to fall into these camps. Jesus knows, too.Jesus had a very specific mission and the rejection in it. He came to seek, serve, and save the very people that ridiculed him and misbelieved. Might we find our hope in Christ alone. May his life, of one who endured much, be cause for our own endurance. He alone endows our suffering with transcendent meaning and purpose. Let us fix our eyes on His reward (looking through our hardship) to future joy.