life together unscripted.

Geneviève, a French-Québécoise native, details her Québécoise childhood in the 80s, and childhood trauma. She describes what she thought was a quiet, suburban childhood in a blue-collar neighborhood. Her dad, a milkman, and her mother a bank-teller, who dreamt of being a primary school teacher. Still, at the age of 9, her father left, and she rarely saw him again. She also learned eventually that her father had done many illegal things to the family, without her knowledge. Still, she believes she had a good childhood and is very grateful to her mother Suzanne LaBadie, a devout Catholic, who was always praying and did her best to raise her kids on her own, with a step-dad later joining the family.

Since her father left and having grown up poor, she searched for worldly things and relationships to validate her hurt, and became a sex addict who was angry with men. In searching for healing, at the age of 16, she had her first boyfriend and her first sexual experience. Over time, she had many promiscuous encounters with men and women, having had long relationships with women too. For a while, Geneviève thought she was bisexual. From the age of 27, she spent 8 years as a prostitute. Prostitution is not a choice, and though legal, being sexually violated is not a job. It must be talked about.

After exiting prostitution for good, she had three children with an Asian man. She understands God as her perfect father and has lived in Australia for twenty years, dealing with her trauma through art and research. In terms of childhood safety, it’s important to teach kids to deal with their emotions. That is, to talk about their feelings when they are young and to not tell them to ‘not cry’. Conversations about childhood trauma need to be had and addressed.

Amanda, former Events Manager at World Vision, Australia Red Cross, and Many Rooms, speaks of the centrality of prayer to the Christian life, her rough upbringing, faith in suffering, and mercy ministry.

Whilst raised in a Christian home, her dad left Amanda’s mum to take care of four kids on her own. Despite the circumstances, she made the emotional well-being of her kids central and did her best to provide for her kids and nourish their faith. Because of her past, and with the compassionate heart God gave her, Amanda served in World Vision for almost a decade, and even now continues to work in mercy ministry. She encourages us to use our skills and resources to advance God’s kingdom, but first, we must focus on our personal relationship with Jesus, then look after our family, then our sphere of influence, and then the world.

Dom reunites with his old band members from Throwdown in this special episode of LTU. The band reminisces over their favourite and last shows with Throwdown, some crazy experiences (like stabbing, guns, and how Matt went to jail on tour) and what they’ve been up to in the past fifteen years.

In the decades since Dom left the band, he has gotten married, had a kid, moved to Geelong in Australia, and became a church creative director at City on a Hill. Keith dabbles in metal-Esque music, but his main work is in user interface design. Matt moved to Washington state, has a five-year-old son, is in the process of building a house, and works in marketing for a motorcycle accessory company as he has for fourteen years. Tommy has recently picked up the guitar during COVID after a fifteen-year hiatus and now seeks to be the Tedashii 69 of hardcore music on Soundcloud. He also has a few kids and is working on an organic plant-based café as he pursues a plant-based lifestyle. Ben hasn’t aged in 25 years and has worked in the fitness industry. He moved to Toronto with his now-ex-wife and kids in 2008, though has had a gnarly divorce a few years ago and is left raising the kids on his own. Marc has been opening gigs since 2001, formed a hardcore punk band called The Eulogy in 2012, and moved in with his girlfriend and her kids.

Tessa Rickard, a nutritionist, mostly works with people with digestive issues and women with Hashimoto’s, and teaches them what to eat and how to eat for their body. She discusses her work, thyroid conditions, her son’s dyslexia, physical health, the danger of snacking, and the way the church has dealt with health and weight issues.

Dyslexic children have their strengths. For example, her son is overwhelmed by written work but excels in creative and artistic work. When you understand the interests of dyslexic children and pursue them, you will find that they have their strengths and can excel. In terms of health, it’s important to find a good community and a good doctor, getting tested regularly, and eating right for our body. One shouldn’t discriminate on weight but focus on how a person feels about their weight. If we focus on how we feel, we avoid scales and learn to love ourselves. Taking care of our bodies is a spiritual issue.

In today’s episode, Josh & Sarah step out from behind the scenes to ask Dom some questions people had about his experiences from playing in a straight-edge band to now serving as the Creative Director for City on a Hill.

0-4:30 Introductions

4:30-6:50. Dom discusses his life’s biggest challenge: "how do I continue to sit in a place of institution and structure as an oddball in the church...learning to be diplomatic in conversations that need to be had in the church."

6:55-11:00. Dom shares why he left the straight-edge band Throwdown in 2006. He felt he had a lot of pride in himself as being someone in the eyes of the world, and that his life didn’t match up with the Scriptures. He realised all the kingdoms he built up were for naught and needed to be let go so he could see something more beautiful.

11:20-13:00. Dom shares who he still keeps in touch with from his old crew. For him, it’s mostly Tommy who’s like a brother to him.  

13:00-16:00. Dom discusses whether he would play in a band again, why the music industry was hard for him.  Although he wouldn't tour, he is still enjoying the process of writing lyrics and working on a project called New Noise with a friend.  

16:00-17:00. Dom discusses how he feels about playing worship in the church.

18:00-23:00. Dom shares how he continues to live a faithful lifestyle amidst the ups and downs of life. The trick is to look for ways to see and experience God afresh... to never become complacent in your knowledge of him.

24:00-26:00. Dom revisits a previous question on Throwdown and whether he would ever play in the band again.

26:30-34:00. Does hardcore belong in the church? He believes worship will evolve but that it shouldn’t be about the individual expression as a solo concert. Playing that out will be difficult.

34:00-36:45. Playing board games with Cory from Slipknot.

36:50-39:00. Dom’s dream festival line-up: Sigur Ros, Refused, Sleeping Giant, and Chris Dicker.

39:20–45:00. How straight-edge made Dom feel prideful, but also saved him having grown up with patterns of addiction. A bad hallucinogenic trip on weed first made Dom renounce ‘those college years’ of drugs and alcohol. Also why Dom stopped being edge, and whether he would ever re-edge.

45:30-49:00. How tattoos hurt and are not fun, but also his views on tattoos and the church.  

49:30-51:00. Dom shares how he manages discontentment in the world and his own anxiety and depression, with the concept of heaven.

53:00-59:00. What makes people fear and hate God is the hypocrisy of Christians. The Bible speaks about grace, and loving God and people,  but Christians are so judgemental because we forget the grace we have received in Christ.

59:30-1.03:00. How much of the Bible is literal, and how do you approach stories like six-day creation and the flood? Much of the Bible is allegorical, and if you wish to look into rationalisation of scriptures have a look at apologetics.\

1.04:00-1.08:00. How the church has handled homosexuality, and why they need to be more flexible to what the Spirit wants to do with this generation. Jesus would have some strong things to say to the church regarding the issue. We have to learn to love people in their journey, and have conversations, but the topic is a lot more complicated than can be discussed in 10 minutes.

1.09:00-1.13:00. Open mic discussion with Dom, Sarah, and Josh around the difficulty of discussing homosexuality but the need for it to be addressed, and for the church to pick a side.

1.13:00-1.1:16:54 lighthearted close answering the question of ‘what is your favourite food?’

Candice is an Australian lawyer who works in the UK public service. She runs a consultancy that specialises in trauma recovery. Through her coaching program, she empowers people who have been through traumatic events, including those who have been hurt by the church, to come out stronger into the life they’re called to live.

She discusses the social and pastoral implications of a shame culture where ‘bad things aren’t talked about and everyone says they’re fine. She also discusses marriage and post-natal depression.

In trauma recovery, it’s crucial to feel seen, safe, and loved. It’s a slow journey in walking with them as they learn to love themselves again, and heal holistically (mentally, physically, socially, and spiritually). Even among those who are not Christian, belief in a higher power and listening to someone pray for them is liberating and hope-giving.

Tegan Philip is a retired Australian Netball player for the Melbourne Vixens. She discusses the lifestyle of a professional athlete and also the role her faith plays.

She discusses the importance of work-life balance, how mental and physical strength is crucial to her performance, and what the life of an elite athlete looks like.

Tegan looks for opportunities to share her faith and acknowledges God’s grace through the life she’s been blessed to experience.

Although she finds sharing faith difficult, she finds comfort in her Christian friends and family that help keep her accountable.

Titane Laurent is a Moroccan-Born, Belgium-raised travelling artist who now resides in Melbourne. She discusses her journey as an artist, her understanding of success/failure, hearing the voice of the Spirit, having visions, and her thoughts on the role of husbands and wives.

To the single, she says “find yourself first and God’s purpose for you. Don’t find your identity in your spouse, and don’t let your joy be stolen away from you. Marriage is about sharing happiness, not stealing it away from the other.”

To the Christian artist, she says “art is about creating the voice of the Spirit, which is a form of worship, not about fame or money.”

Julie-Anne Laird is the Archbishop's Canon for Church Planting at the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne, Director of Missional Engagement for City to City Australia, and a Young Adults Pastor at All Saints Anglican.

She discusses her decades of vocation in ministry as well the life of a female pastor.

She encourages women in ministry to continue being stewards of Christ and the gospel, while challenging other brothers and sisters to hold lightly to secondary beliefs.

Dr. Sandra Grafe Glahn is one of only five female professors at Dallas Theological Seminary where she serves as the professor of media arts and worship. Dr. Glahn is also an author, editor, journalist, mother, and public speaker who advocates for transformative thinking in the arts, gender, and sexual intimacy in marriage.

In today’s episode, live from Texas during the crazy cold front, Sandra highlights her life in Texas, the state of the world, and how her faith ties in with the chaos. She further discusses gender roles, feminism, and misogyny.

Erica Hamence is an Associate Minister at St. Barnabas' Anglican Church in Broadway, Sydney. She is also a spokesperson against domestic and family violence through Common Grace, a non-denominational institution that stands for Jesus and justice.

She discusses “coercive control” (how the heart of domestic abuse is an abuse of power to control another person), as well as gender and social justice in the church.

Erica shares how pastoral care in the church should exercise a great amount of patience in order to give victims a sense of ‘agency’.

She adds; “What’s important is to know and tell that all are broken and can only be fixed by Jesus. There should also be accountability for ministers to ensure there is no gaslighting or abuse of power, that men and women in ministry (and their spouses) each have their voice heard.”

Jane is an academic teaching scholar at The College of Arts & Education at Victoria University. In this episode, Jane discusses her recent experience providing a talk with TEDx, Universal Design, youth work, and social change in disability and special needs.

Though some with disabilities believe their condition to be part of their identity, others do not. That is why diverse representation in all sectors of society is important. Jane suggests safe places and individualized approaches do have a use, but that the notion of special needs should be removed. Every student has their learning needs in a classroom, even if the way they may acquire a skill is different. The notion of special creates the ‘other’ which destroys inclusion and generates an "us vs them" system.

Dr Carmen Imes is an Old Testament professor at Prairie College. She discusses her journey to becoming a professor; her new book, ‘Bearing God's Name: Why Sinai Still Matters’, and the role of women in ministry.

On ‘Why Sinai Still Matters’, she says; “The old law was never meant to enslave the Israelites again, but to show them what it’s like to walk in freedom as God’s representatives. If we truly lived in light of God’s presence, we would have reverential fear. This healthy fear recognises who God is, what his power involves, and what he has called us to be. YHWH’s name revealed to Moses is about whom he will reveal himself to be throughout the book of Exodus.”

On ‘liminal space’, “God takes Israel out of Egypt and puts them in liminal space, in the wilderness, to test them and remind them that he is God. Now, during COVID, we find ourselves in a liminal space where our faith is tested and our definition of church is challenged.”