Making Faith Your Own w/ Gabrielle Black

Making Faith Your Own w/ Gabrielle Black

This week, Debi is joined by Gabrielle Black, youth pastor at Dream City Church Scottsdale campus. Gabrielle talks about growing up in a strong Christian home, attending church multiple times a week and going to Christian school.  Even with all of those positive, godly influences she still had to make her faith her own.  Gabrielle and Debi discuss how too many young people coast through growing up in church and live off of their parents' faith but never truly develop a strong faith of their own.  A personal faith is essential in order to stand strong in a decaying culture and also to fulfill the calling God has for their lives.  Gabrielle shares how she was called into ministry at twelve years old but also had to walk out her life of faith. They discuss some practical things that youth leaders, parents and students themselves can do to help future generations develop a strong personal relationship with God. To connect with Dream City Youth at the Scottsdale campus visit https://www.dreamcitychurch.us/locations/scottsdale-az/ministries/youth/ To Find out more about Dream City Church visit  https://dreamcitychrch.us Please follow Into the Fire podcast on your favorite podcast platform, give us a 5-star rating and leave a review

America 250 w/ Earl Taylor

This week, Debi is joined by Earl Taylor, president of the National Center for Constitutional Studies. Earl and Debi discuss the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Earl shares some of the lessons learned in the years between the founding of Jamestown and the writing of the Declaration of Independence, including an early recognition that socialism does not work. These lessons influenced what was included in our founding documents. Earl shared how the founding of America launched a "5000 year leap" in innovation and scientific discovery that is unmatched in any point in history. We went from ox carts to outer space in a relatively short period of time.  Earl shares some fascinating stories about historical figures like John Quincy Adams, Abraham Lincoln and how they realized very early on that America was forgetting the important lessons of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Earl and Debi discuss some of the important founding principles of America, how they are rooted in faith and how they still apply today.  The founding principles of America are worth guarding and preserving. To learn more about the National Center for Constitutional Studies visit https://nccs.net/ [https://nccs.net/] To Find out more about Dream City Church visit  https://dreamcitychrch.us [https://dreamcitychurch.us/] Please follow Into the Fire podcast on your favorite podcast platform, give us a 5-star rating and leave a review

The Self Care Trap w/ Alison Furno

This week, Debi is joined by Alison Furno, a  volleyball coach and health influencer on social media.  Alison talks about how the cultural emphasis on "self care" is often destructive.  Alison and Debi discuss how the obsession with "self-care" can be used to avoid growth. We have become a comfort driven society but success and spiritual growth require discipline and sacrifice.  They also discuss the issue of "toxic positivity". Cultural focuses on things like affirmations and thinking good thoughts,yet people are more depressed and more anxious than ever before. Something is missing Alison talks about how true self care is both taking good physical care of our bodies, the temple of the Holy Spirit and developing spiritual and mental disciplines that make us stronger and help us grow. To Find out more about Dream City Church visit  https://dreamcitychrch.us Please follow Into the Fire podcast on your favorite podcast platform, give us a 5-star rating and leave a review

The Family on the Ballot w/ Peter Gentala

This week, Debi is joined by Peter Gentala, president of Center for Arizona Policy. Peter discusses a new initiative to Renew Arizona Families.  Right now, Arizona ranks 35th out of 50 in the nationwide family index.     Children living with a married mother and father is the single greatest indicator of success in a wide range of areas. Children are more likely to do well academically, are less likely to live in poverty, are less likely to suffer from depression and anxiety and are significantly less likely to suffer from one or more adverse childhood event when they live with their married parents, regardless of race or socioeconomic status.   Peter and Debi discuss how policy can support families and help them thrive, why the 2026 election is crucial to families across Arizona and what churches can and should do to help strengthen and support families. To see the data and learn more about the Renewing AZ Families Initiative visit https://www.renewingazfamilies.org/ To find the Arizona Voter Guide visit https://www.azvoterguide.com/ Remember to decline to Sign all Education ballot initiatives. To learn more about how ESAs help Arizona families and why the program is worth protecting, visit https://azlovesesas.com/ To Find out more about Dream City Church visit  https://dreamcitychrch.us Please follow Into the Fire podcast on your favorite podcast platform, give us a 5-star rating and leave a review

Primaries and Midterms w/ Alison Furno

This week, Debi is joined by Alison Furno, a political strategist and volunteer leader with Dream City Civics Alison provides an overview of what a midterm election is and what a primary election is. Debi and Alison discuss why primary elections are so important and why Christians should engage in the process. They discuss how voting can help Arizona become a Christian state. Alison and Debi also break down the different types of petitions that people are asked to sign. There are candidate petitions, ballot initiative petitions, and online or text petitions asking you to support an issue.  They explain what each of these types of petitions do and what you should be aware of before signing.  Finally, they discuss a new elected official prayer guide. You type in your address and find out who represents you at every level of government. There are also descriptions of ways to pray for each type of office.  To find the Arizona Voter Portal go to  https://my.arizona.vote/PortalList.aspx [https://my.arizona.vote/PortalList.aspx] To access the elected official prayer guide go to https://pray-guide.roa-apps.com/Home/PrayerGuidance [https://pray-guide.roa-apps.com/Home/PrayerGuidance] Remember to decline to Sign all Education ballot initiatives. To learn more about how ESAs help Arizona families and why the program is worth protecting, visit https://azlovesesas.com/ [https://azlovesesas.com/] To Find out more about Dream City Church visit  https://dreamcitychrch.us [https://dreamcitychurch.us/] Please follow Into the Fire podcast on your favorite podcast platform, give us a 5-star rating and leave a review