Chris Grainger 0:02

Welcome to the Lion Within Us, a podcast serving Christian men who are hungry to be the leaders. God intends you to be. I'm your host, Chris Stranger. Let's jump in. All right, fellas. This is your fun Friday member spotlight. Let's get into it. Okay. So before we get to our member, the scripture of the week this week, it's in the book of 2 Timothy, which ironically I'm teaching in 1 Timothy right now. But anyway, we're in 2 Timothy. Uh first chapter verses 8 and 9 says, Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was granted to us in Christ Jesus from all eternity. So, guys, I took some time to unpack those verses in the spiritual kickoff episode. So if you go back in your podcast feed two episodes back, you should see that SKO. And then we had our meet episode on Wednesday, and now we're here on our fun Friday uh with our member spotlight. But guys, I want to remind you, we do the daily SKO Monday through Friday at the Lion. We have a lot of fun with it, guys, getting a lot of enjoyment out of it. It also gives you access to our prayer request space where we have a weekly prayer call. I'm telling you, fellas, it's just a great way. And a cool part, I don't talk about this enough, but you even have a free gift that we're giving you guys now. So if you want a little free gift from the line within us, hey, just go join the daily SKO. We'll send you a link, get your free gift, and uh hopefully you'll be encouraged by it. So uh as I love these episodes because we get to show you and get you good, let you guys meet some of our wonderful members of the Lion. And this is gonna be a fun one. His name is Christian Dugan, and I'm super pumped to have him in here with us. So, Chris, what's going on today, brother? How's things in Florida today?

Christian Duggan 1:42

Oh,

Scripture And Weekly Encouragement

Christian Duggan 1:43

actually they're warming up. It was about probably about 85, 87 today, slowly getting warmer. Slowly getting warmer. It's not bad for March weather, man. No. Another another month or so. I mean another couple months is gonna be brutal.

Chris Grainger 2:00

Yeah. Oh yeah. No doubt, brother. The sun, the sunshine state has a lot of sunshine, that's for sure. Yeah. Well, well, cool, man. Well, I mean, I'm I'm I'm excited to have you here, Chris. I mean, we always these episodes with they're just kind of a little flexible. It's love for you just to share a little bit about your testimony uh with our listeners out there, buddy.

Christian Duggan 2:26

Um, I'm 45 years old. I have three daughters. Uh I'm married for now. Um

Daily SKO And Community Benefits

Christian Duggan 2:37

I got um I'm a marine veteran. Uh I'm a I'm a marine diesel mechanic. I specialize mostly in John Deere caterpillar stuff.

Chris Grainger 2:47

Yeah.

Christian Duggan 2:49

Um I live in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. How old are your daughters, man? Uh my oldest is 12, and my twin girls are eight. Man, ain't nothing like a girl dad, right?

Meet Christian Dugan In Florida

Christian Duggan 3:06

No, I kind of almost wish I had a little boy so I could bring them on the retreat, but that's the way it goes.

Chris Grainger 3:13

Hey, man. I hey uh those girls are something else, man. I got three girls myself, as you know, and it's uh ain't nothing like it, buddy. So I don't have twins, though, man. I'm sure that twins is a fun little variable you had, huh? Yeah, that was uh that was that was that was a special day. Now the twins run on your side or your wife's side?

Christian Duggan 3:36

No, my wife's side. I I had no idea she had had them running in her family, or I guess her grandmother was a twin. Okay.

Chris Grainger 3:43

Okay. That's cool, man. That's cool. And I know you that you're working on some things and got a lot of things happening. So a little bit about your your your Christian walk. When did you when did you become a Christian? What did what what did that look like for you?

Christian Duggan 3:58

Uh yeah, I was baptized when I was a baby, like a lot of us were, but uh kind of was born again um maybe a year and a half, two years ago. Um I lost my job and my marriage, uh I think I got laid off, and my marriage was struggling, and I just needed some guidance on yeah, I was struggling with alcohol and things like that. Uh needed some positivity.

Chris Grainger 4:26

So you kind of lean back into your fake, it sounds like yeah, yeah.

Christian Duggan 4:31

It's uh positivity I wanted, you know, good vibes and good people I I could depend on and you know, same goals as I have.

Chris Grainger 4:42

Yeah, right. So how's that been how's that worked for you since you kind of leaned back into it, buddy?

Christian Duggan 4:49

It's been good. It's been good. Things are a lot clearer. Still struggling a little bit, you know, trying to find myself, but things are definitely clearer every day. Mm-hmm.

Chris Grainger 4:59

There's your wife.

Christian Duggan 5:00

When I first talked to you like a year ago, I was I was in pretty bad shape. Yeah. Well, what's been the biggest shift over the last year then for you? Just uh giving it all to God, really. You know, just not trying not to worry about things I have no control over. And uh praying and hard. It's hard to let go, ain't it? It is, it's one of the hardest things, is you know, you gotta just give it to God.

Chris Grainger 5:33

Uh y you mentioned, you know, your marriage and you're working through that. I mean, so is your wife a believer?

Born Again Through Crisis And Recovery

Christian Duggan 5:39

No. Uh she was raised um in the Jewish faith, but she doesn't really practice that. She's just Okay. Not an atheist, just doesn't practice religion.

Chris Grainger 5:50

Right. Yeah, I mean, there's a lot of folks like that these days, bro. So I mean, we'll be praying for you for that marriage and for reconciliation. You know, that's that's a big deal for us, and we're we're cheering for you all the way by. Thanks, man. Well, I mean, um, how'd you find a lion, Chris? I mean, I I know, but share, share with our listeners out there how you got connected with it.

Christian Duggan 6:11

Well, it was strange. I think I was on the Bible app. I think I was on the Bible app, and I was just scrolling through, and uh, if I remember, I think I saw one of um something on the line popped up, and I just clicked on it, and I remember I think that was it. And uh I joined um just the regular group and then uh I saw the um masterminds and I joined that. And that's been that's been a lot of fun, and that's cool, man. Eye-opening and you know, getting a lot out of it.

Chris Grainger 6:41

Well, that's cool, brother. Well, I mean, uh the Bible app is a great it's crazy how that that platform connects us with so many guys. You know, God God is moving in a mighty way there, for sure.

Christian Duggan 6:52

Yeah.

Chris Grainger 6:53

So that's awesome, buddy. Uh you mentioned you're in the mastermind group, which is awesome. So so what uh what what what was the kind of the pushing point to to make you want to take that step?

Christian Duggan 7:06

Uh it just it just seemed uh, you know, uh I wanted to be better. And it seemed like a lot of the that was kind of the mission, you know, be a better man, better Christian, better father, better husband. Um that's basically my goal. Just be better. And uh it seems like the guys want to do the same thing. So we all have a common bond. That's right.

Chris Grainger 7:31

So kind of walk for for our listeners out there, what is a what is a mastermind session look like, man? Give them a kind of behind the curtains view of what that's what that is from your perspective.

Christian Duggan 7:42

Um you know, we get we jump in uh mine's at mine's at eight in the evening. I know there are different times. Uh I've I've known the guys for a little while now. We say

Finding The Lion And Joining Mastermind

Christian Duggan 7:51

a prayer, you know, if if there's football going on, we usually talk some trash, but that's over now. Right. Uh but um uh just you know, we we talk about how our week was, what our wins were, what our losses were. Um if you know, if there's anything we could have done better, um, you know, we focus on obviously the guy, whoever was in the hot seat that um that week or those two weeks, and how he progressed if he you know managed to overcome any of his hurdles or um right that's very cool, man.

Chris Grainger 8:32

I know so you've been in the hot seat a few times. I mean, how's that how's that experience been for you?

Christian Duggan 8:38

It was good. First time it's a little um um I don't know what the word I'm looking for. Um not bad, it's just you know different. It was uh you know, I didn't know yeah, unique. Perfect. That's what I'm looking for. Yeah, it was unique. I didn't know what to expect, but it was cool, you know. You get to uh you get to throw, you know, whatever issues, um, you know, and you get to hit people with questions, how they would react to things. And um Yeah. Um and a lot of it's good. You get to bounce, you know, questions off people, their feedback, their response, you know, if they agree

Inside A Mastermind Session Format

Christian Duggan 9:17

with how you approached it, if not, you know, it's good, honest, you know, they said I didn't like the way that went, or I I would have approached it differently.

Chris Grainger 9:25

Um we mentioned too, uh with in the with that format, you know, you have battle buddies and things like that. So how's that work for you, you know, between sessions and and follow-through and accountability? What's that been like for you?

Christian Duggan 9:44

It's been good. Benjamin's been my battle buddy. Um he's uh you've interviewed him, he's a police officer in Virginia. Uh he's a good dude.

Chris Grainger 9:52

Yeah.

Christian Duggan 9:53

Um yeah, he'll he'll you know, he'll touch base with me once a week, see how I'm going, see if things, you know, better or worse. Um, it's just definitely a good foundation to have. Very good. You know, brothers out there that are good people that you know are good people. Right.

Chris Grainger 10:08

Right. I mean, that's awesome, bro. Yeah, I mean, and Benjamin, he's gonna be at our our retreat as well. So you guys get to meet here pretty soon. Yeah, looking forward to meeting him. It's gonna be awesome, man. Well, I mean, when you think about uh you and and your walk, what do you think has been the most impactful part of you being in this in the mastermind group for your walk with Christ?

Christian Duggan 10:33

Well, just finding finding confidence in what I'm doing is right. Um, I just needed validation, you know. Am I wasting you know wasting my time doing what am I doing? Should I, you know, is is doing the right thing, yeah, you know, uh just reinforcing my walk with God. Um, seeing the other guys are the same struggle I'm having, you know, everyday life things. Yeah. Um marriage, work, kids, mortgages,

Hot Seat Growth And Honest Feedback

Christian Duggan 11:05

all that stuff.

Chris Grainger 11:08

Yeah, the list never ends, right?

Christian Duggan 11:11

Yeah, and all the crap we gotta deal with with uh social media and all that other stuff.

Battle Buddy Accountability Between Calls

Christian Duggan 11:19

What do you think's been the hardest part of being in it, Chris? Yeah, yeah, taking people's advice, you know, um, and listening, you know, and swallowing their pride, and if some somebody disagrees with what you say, you know, or how you approached it, listen. Yeah. You know, it's not always easy to know you f to find out people think, you know, you did something wrong or approached some respectively, of course, you know.

Chris Grainger 11:52

I know one of the unique things about the mastermind as well is the only one thing that's mastermind, we're trying to lead with God's word all the time,

Confidence Through Scripture Based Counsel

Chris Grainger 12:01

versus just, you know, this is what I think, this is my opinion here, you know. So maybe kind of shed some light on how you guys bring in the Bible and to help, you know, build up the the your fellow brothers that are in those group in the meeting.

Christian Duggan 12:17

Yeah, well no, we'll try and um no matter who's um who's in the hot seat, uh I know the guy uh myself included are looking for scriptures that kind of reinforce whatever the topic is, you know, or you know, if if there's a question, you know, what is a scripture that can kind of define what the issue is, you know, what the solution is in God's what you know, God's eyes, the right way to deal with it.

Chris Grainger 12:45

That's cool, man. Yeah. That's really cool. I mean, I know you guys, you're leaning in hard and you've you're walking through a lot of stuff right now. I just just want you to know, man, that you you're doing a good job, bro. You really are.

Christian Duggan 12:58

Thanks, Chris.

Chris Grainger 12:59

You're making progress, and and I mean, the group's better because you're in it. And I just want you to know that.

Christian Duggan 13:06

I appreciate it.

Chris Grainger 13:07

Maybe there's a guy listening right now, too, that he

Comfort Zone Warning And Final Encouragement

Chris Grainger 13:11

hasn't maybe he's just like you, he found us on the Bible app, or maybe obviously he's listened to the podcast, but they haven't taken a step. They haven't checked out the daily SKO, or they haven't ch checked out the Lions Den or the Mastermind. What will be your encouragement to that guy who's just trying maybe maybe he's on the fence right now, but he hasn't taken any steps forward.

Christian Duggan 13:32

Come out of your comfort zone. Uh your comfort zone is uh is in my opinion the enemy. You know, comfort, you know, you don't go anywhere with comfort. Yeah. You gotta move forward and uh test those waters and that's so true, man. The obstacle is the way.

Chris Grainger 13:55

Yeah, you don't go anywhere in your comfort zone. That's good, Chris. We're gonna we're gonna have to put down on a coffee mug, brother. Oh man. Well, brother, you you've come at yours and and and we're honored to be walking with you for sure. And I just want to thank you, man. Any any final you know, word on the line that you'd like to share for the for the listeners before we get into our dad jokes and stuff?

Christian Duggan 14:19

No, just uh stay with it, keep the faith. Like I said, the obstacles the way, you know, get out of your comfort zone.

Chris Grainger 14:27

Amen to that, brother. Amen. Well, Chris, it's been awesome. Hey guys, the book of the week is again unleashing the lion within. So we didn't have an author this week. So we won't we all whenever we don't have an author, we like to promote the lion book. So go check that out on Amazon. And Chris, I got two dad jokes for you, man. So I want to see which one you like, okay? All right. So the first one is uh did you know that corduroy pillows are in style now, Chris? Did you know that? Yeah, man, they're making headlines. There you go. All right, so uh that that's that one. And oh shoot, man. I uh for somehow, straight up, I pulled the uh I got the same dad joke back to the back, and we can't do that, man. So I I just did an episode and I had uh I thought I I had not used this dad joke, but I have so my second dad joke ain't gonna work for me. So yeah, don't worry. I know you guys are seeing this on the fly. I know where to go to get a dad joke. You know where I go, Chris, to get dad jokes? My buddy Doug. Doug always he keeps my inbox full of dad jokes within his feed. So this is uh this is what I do uh in in the in the moment. So here we go, right here. So the second dad joke, Chris, is what gives you the power to walk through walls? You know what that is? It's a door. You know. So all right, Doug. That's a tough one. Which one I like the best? That's a tough one. Hey, uh I'm telling you, man, and and Doug, man, he'll send me these things, and and out in the middle of nowhere, I'll just get a message from him. And he never says hi, anything. It's just the dad joke. And

Book Plug And Dad Jokes Break

Chris Grainger 16:10

and um if if my wife sees me laughing, she knows usually that Doug's done sent me a dad joke and caught me off guard. So so yeah, man, I don't know. Which one do you think? Number one or number two? Probably like number one.

Christian Duggan 16:23

Number two's number two is very riddle, almost a riddle. But uh so funny, though. There you go.

Chris Grainger 16:31

Well, Doug, thank you for saving me. I've never had one because I literally just recorded another spotlight, and that seemed my number two joke was the same as the one I just done. So I said, Well, I can't do that, that wouldn't work. So uh man, that Doug, you came through to came through as a savior for us there, brother. So thanks, Doug. That's it. That's it. Oh man. So, question of the week for you guys out there is were you choosing comfort over the fire of God's calling? So, look, man, we're not called to comfort. Chris literally just said it a minute ago. Like, guys, you got to get out your comfort zone. So don't choose the easy, lean into the hard. It's it's totally worth it. So, man, Chris, it's been an honor having you on, brother. Anything else you'd like to share before we hop off today?

Christian Duggan 17:11

Oh, it's uh have a great day, guys.

Chris Grainger 17:14

Keep fighting the good fight. Amen, brother. Well, guys, like like Chris said, gotta keep fighting. And if you need some some support coming alongside during that fight, this is what we're here for. Uh head over to our website, fellas, the Lion Within. That's thhelionwithin.us. Join the daily social kickoff, join the Lions Den. Put in an application for the mastermind. Come to our live events, guys, or as Chris mentioned earlier too, check out the stuff on the Bible app. That stuff is phenomenal. And we're, I mean, guys seem to be really enjoying it. That platform rather is phenomenal. Hopefully, you'll enjoy the plans. And uh, guys, we could love to serve you there. So give us a rating and review for sure. And uh, other than that, guys, share this stuff out with others. So, Chris, thank you again, brother, for hanging out today, man. Thanks, Chris. All right, we're guys. Well, thank thanks for listening, fellas. Keep keep uh tuning in each week and uh keep unleashing the line within. If there's one habit that can change a home, it's this when a husband prays with his wife. Not because it's a magic formula, but because it recenters your marriage under God's authority and care. And let's be honest, a lot of guys want to do it, but most don't know how to start without it feeling awkward. Maybe you've tried it before and it felt forced, or maybe you've

Question Of The Week And Next Steps

Chris Grainger 18:31

never tried it because you don't even know what to say. Or maybe you're thinking, man, I'm not a pastor, I'm just a guy. And that's why we created this guide. It's our how to pray with your wife. Simple guide. It's biblical, it's practical, and it's designed to help you start praying with your wife in a way that actually feels natural. So it's a five-section guide and it gives you a simple framework to get started. Okay, it makes sure everything is grounded in scripture, and it also has a powerful PDF that you can pull up whenever you need, especially when things get off, because they're gonna get off. That's normal. So this is all about reclaiming your marriage and reclaiming the spiritual leadership reigns of your home. Because praying with your wife is one of the strongest ways to fight for unity, to build trust, and to right the ship when life starts to pull you off a course. So if you're ready, get access today at thelionwithin.us slash guides. That's thelionwithin.us slash guides. And start unleashing the lion within at home by leading your marriage through prayer.