Building Great Lives Podcast

Trent Gilliam

Building Great Lives podcast is a podcast about real life, facing real issues and finding real answers. Our mission… equipping listeners from around the world grow, heal, find and fulfill their life purpose. Have you ever had difficult questions? Are you ready to find answers?Have you ever been hurt?Are you ready to be healed? Have you ever felt like you were just wondering through life?Are you ready to find direction, pursueyour passion and fulfill your purpose?The Building Great Lives podcast strives to offers biblical, yet practical solutions to life’s complicated problems.Jesus said… Upon this rock I will build my church… The church is more than the place we gather to worship. We the people are the church. Jesus was telling Peter, “I want to build people! Great lives are not born, they are built one day at a time. Let’s start building!

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Religion & SpiritualityReligion & Spirituality
A Word for the Brokenhearted
Nov 20 2023
A Word for the Brokenhearted
There are many things in this life that leave us brokenhearted. Situations and circumstances such as: the death of a loved one, a lost relationship, a broken marriage, broken trust, a loved one struggling with sickness, disappointments and letdowns of life in general and mental, physical and spiritual trauma.All of these things leave us broken. When your heart is broken, healing can feel impossible. But I have good news for you. God can heal your broken heart. In Luke 4:18, Jesus declared that He came to heal the brokenhearted.“Brokenhearted” in this text means, to be deprived of strength, shattered, crushed completely. To be torn down or apart. To be broken into pieces.To heal means to console and set free those who are deeply afflicted, or whose hearts are broken.Jesus is saying that He came to heal those deeply afflicted by a broken heart.  In this episode, we’ll take a deeper look at the life of Job, David and Jesus. Through their example, we can learn a lot about healing and discover how God wants to heal your broken heart as well. Thanks for listening! Let’s keep building!Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
The Danger of Comparing Ourselves to Others
Nov 5 2023
The Danger of Comparing Ourselves to Others
We all have people that we look up to. People that motivate us to become better. It’s natural to desire good qualities we see in others and to model some areas of our lives by the example of people we admire. However, our goal should be to become the best, most authentic, version of OURSELVES, not to copycat someone else.The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 10:12, that it is unwise to measure ourselves and compare ourselves among ourselves. It’s never good when we allow our inner self-critic to compare ourselves to others. The danger of measuring or comparing ourselves to others is that our comparisons are never fair.This type of comparison leads to discontentment and feelings of inadequacy. It also leads to unnecessary insecurities. Comparison is a thief to joy.It can be difficult, but you have to break the habit of measuring yourself by others. In this episode, we’ll talk about true vs. false measurements. We’ll also look at several biblical examples and then discuss the only three self measurements that matter. The goal of this episode is to help each listener break free from the comparison trap while learning to live happy in who God created them to be. Thanks for listening! Let’s Keep Building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Increasing Your Spiritual Capacity
Oct 30 2023
Increasing Your Spiritual Capacity
In today’s episode, we’re going to talk about how to increase your spiritual capacity. Regardless of who you are or how long you’ve been living for God, it’s crucial to know that God has more for you. Your potential doesn’t have to be limited by your upbringing, your exposure, financial standing or where you were born. Spiritual growth is possible. The ceiling on your potential can be lifted.The Psalmist, in Psalms 119:32, asked God to “enlarge his heart”.Jabez, in 1 Chronicles 4:10, asked God to “bless him and enlarge his coast”. The Disciples, in Luke 17:5, asked Jesus to “increase their faith”. Peter, in 2 Peter 1:5 said, “giving all diligence, add to your faith”.Paul, in 1 Corinthians 2:9 said, “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him”. Paul is saying, there’s more available right now! Not just when we get to heaven. Whatever you’ve seen… God has more.Whatever you’ve heard… God has more.Whatever you’ve thought, envisioned or dreamed… God has more for you.Join me in this episode as we learn to take the limits off and release God to increase our spiritual understanding! Thank you for listening! Let’s Keep Building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Silencing Self-Criticism
Oct 23 2023
Silencing Self-Criticism
We can be our own worst enemy. Sometimes we set unrealistic expectations and then criticize ourselves when we don't live up to them. While we all have room for improvement, there’s a huge difference between self-evaluation and self-criticism…Self evaluation is a normal reflective process where an individual assesses themselves to gain a better understanding of their strengths and weakness with the intent of making improvements.  Self evaluation is much different than self criticism!Self criticism is the continual expression of judgment or disapproval of oneself over perceived personal faults. These negative thoughts can result in feelings of worthlessness and failure. They often lead to discouragement, discontentment, depression and a poor self image. Self criticism has been found to worsen depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm and suicidal thoughts. Learning to silence the inner critic is key to becoming all God has called you to be. Join me in this episode as we look at four keys to silencing our inner critic. Thanks for listening. Let’s Keep Building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
How to Control Your Thought Life
Oct 9 2023
How to Control Your Thought Life
Without a doubt, there’s a battle going on for our mind. The devil desires for worry, depression, anxiety and a poor self-image to be constant companions in your life. Winning the war for our thought life is absolutely key to our mental, emotion and spiritual well-being.Thoughts are seeds that bear fruit. We need to recognize damaging thoughts so we can stop them from influencing our lives. Thoughts, even though they cannot be seen, weighed, or measured hold powerful influence over our lives. Thoughts become feelings. Feelings become actions. Actions become behaviors, both positive and negative. The goal of this episode is to help you recognize unhealthy or inappropriate thoughts, then overcome them. Once we learn to recognize unhealthy or inappropriate thinking, we can start replacing them with healthy and appropriate ones. Thankfully, Philippians 4:7-8 tells us what we should think on. A better understanding of these things will equip us to overcome every unhealthy or inappropriate thought that enters our mind. Thanks for listening. Let’s keep building!Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
The Secret to True Happiness
Sep 18 2023
The Secret to True Happiness
In today’s episode we’re going to reveal the secret to true happiness! When we think about being happy, it’s natural to think of happiness in terms of a special location, memory or an achievement. People even jokingly refer to “finding their happy place”. Truth be told, happiness is much more than a special location, memory or an achievement. Happiness can be defined as an enduring state of mind consisting not only of feelings of joy, contentment, and other positive emotions, but also of a sense that one's life is meaningful and valued. Biblically speaking, happiness isn’t the absence of all trauma, suffering, discomfort or hardship. Happiness is a deep contentment that comes from knowing God is in control working all things for our benefit.It's important for you to remove the illusion that any one thing in this world will make you permanently happy. Happiness isn’t always something we feel. It’s a much deeper expression of life. Happiness is more so connected to who we are and what we do than the circumstances of our life. True happiness is deeply connected to three main areas, our relationship with God, our relationship with family and friends and living a purposeful life. The great news, this means happiness is possible for all of us! Join me in this episode as we explore the meaning of true happiness. We’ll also lay out five keys that will help you unlock the secret to happiness for yourself.Thanks for listening! Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Overcoming Temptation
Sep 11 2023
Overcoming Temptation
In today’s episode we’re going to talk about temptation. What is it and how we can overcome it. Temptation is the testing of man's faithfulness and integrity. It’s something we want that we don’t need or doing something we know we shouldn't.Although it’s much easier to blame the devil, not all temptation comes from him. The truth is, because of sin, many of the temptations we face are because of our own carnal desires. While being tempted is not a sin, temptation is the devil’s attempt to use our weaknesses against. However, we are not powerless.  We will also take a deeper look at how Jesus overcame temptation and how we can apply these principles to our own lives. God never allows us to be tempted beyond what we can take but always provides us with a way out.Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.” God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability. He will provide a way of escape, and keep you, that you may be able to endure.Thanks for listening.Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Establishing Personal Safeguards
Sep 5 2023
Establishing Personal Safeguards
Each of us have strengths and weaknesses. While it is easy to embrace our strengths, we naturally tend to struggle with our weaknesses. It is important that we take note of our weaknesses and do our best to prevent them from being a hinderance in our lives. Naturally, we spend more time reinforcing our strengths and often, to our own disadvantage, ignore our weaknesses. While none of us enjoy admitting we have weaknesses, let alone  dealing with them, we must take our weaknesses seriously. Ignored or overlooked weaknesses can destroy our lives, the lives of others, marriages, families, reputations and ministries. In this episode, we’ll take a look at the lives of Saul, David and Sampson. We will discuss their strengths and weaknesses. In so doing, we can easily see why it is so important for us to set up safeguards against our own weaknesses.Join me in this episode as we discuss the importance of putting safeguards in place that will help us to be successful in every area of our lives.Thanks for listening! Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
How Should Christians Respond to Conspiracy Theories?
Aug 21 2023
How Should Christians Respond to Conspiracy Theories?
This episode is not an attempt to discredit or demean anyone nor is it an attempt to debunk any specific so called “conspiracy theory”. Outside of scripture, I’m not here to tell you how to think or what you should believe. With so many conspiracy theories spreading throughout our world, my desire is to help equip you, so you can respond in a biblical and balanced manner. In this episode, we’ll define what a conspiracy theory is. We will also cover such topics as: what kind of people believe in conspiracies, how do conspiracy theories get started and spread, the algorithm trap, the danger of developing a conspiratorial identity and how scripture teaches us to respond. Thankfully, scripture does provide clear instructions as to how we should respond to conspiracy theories when we hear them.Isaiah 8:11-12 says, For the LORD spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: “Do not call conspiracy all that this people call a conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. Those who follow the Lord are not to get caught up in the prevailing conspiracies of their age. God commanded Isaiah to avoid walking in the ways of people who promote conspiracy theories. Thanks for listening.Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Surviving Setbacks
Aug 14 2023
Surviving Setbacks
In today's episode we're going to talking about surviving setbacks. A setback is an event that delays progress or may even reverse some of the progress.  No matter how carefully we plan, sometimes, things still go wrong.   Setbacks can occur in all areas of life. Setbacks at our jobs. Setbacks in our health. Setbacks in physical projects. Setbacks in our emotional heath. Even, setbacks in our spiritual lives. Experiencing these setbacks can be discouraging. In this episode, we’ll look at a few biblical examples of people that experienced setbacks and overcame them. Then we’ll layout seven keys that will help you overcome when you face them. In Luke 14, Jesus taught about being prepared when building a tower. Every great project manager builds in a contingency plan for unexpected setbacks. Being prepared is a sign of a great project manger. It’s also a sign of a well managed life. Even though all of us experience setbacks, we can overcome them! This episode will cover preparing for setbacks, patience when facing setbacks, the positive side of setbacks and seven keys to overcoming setbacks. Thank you for listening! Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Seeing Others Through the Eyes of God
Aug 7 2023
Seeing Others Through the Eyes of God
It matters how we see others.  We perceive things based on sight or learned behaviors. We filter how we see people through the eyes of our upbringing, beliefs and personal preferences. We can even perceive certain things based on where a person is from. However, if we can learn to see people through the eyes of God, we will no longer see them according to where they were born, the skin tone, their financial standing, or their worldview. We will see them as souls in need of a savior. When we see others through the eyes of Jesus, we’ll see people in two categories, those that are reconciled unto God and those that are not. That’s what it is like to see through the eyes of Jesus. There is only reached and unreached.Paul wrote in Galatians 3:28, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.While we know both Jews and Gentiles, free and slaves, male and female certainly exist, Paul was showing the Galatians all people are equally important to God. God does not see one person of more value than any other. This was a real struggle for the Jewish people of that day. The Jews were very nationalistic. Many are this way today. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with loving where you were born, we must always remind ourselves that our new birth into Kingdom culture must always come first. In this episode, we’ll discover the real reason Jonah didn’t want to preach to the people of Nineveh. We’ll also look at the culture shift Jesus intended by going through Samaria. The goal of this episode is to encourage us to see people as Jesus sees them.Let’s keep building!Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
How to Reconnect with God
Jul 31 2023
How to Reconnect with God
Life is complicated and not always easy. We go through difficult situations. Life is also busy, we have jobs, bills to pay and kids to raise. There’s always something demanding our immediate attention. So much so, if we’re not careful, just as these things can cause our earthly relationships to suffer, they can cause our relationship with God to suffer as well. All relationships require attention. Our relationship with God is no different. None of us are immune to spiritual disconnect. In Proverbs 21:16, Solomon cautioned us about wandering away from the things of God. To wander away means drift slowly. None of us deliberately plan to go astray. Maybe you’ve gone through a season where you feel like you’ve lost your way spiritually? Maybe you’ve been working a ton of hours, missed some church services and now you’re feeling disconnected? Maybe you’ve been hurt by someone in the church and you haven’t been back in a long time? Maybe you’ve experienced a tragic loss that left you disappointed and angry with God?In Jeremiah 24:7, God says, and I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.Thankfully, we can reconnect with God. He desires to have a relationship with us. In this episode, we’ll take a deeper look at this issue, discuss biblical examples as well as lay out six keys to reconnecting with God. Thank you for listening! Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
Modern Day Miracles
Jul 24 2023
Modern Day Miracles
Miracles are extraordinary occurrences that can only be attributed to a supernatural work of God. They surpass all known human ability and natural law. They also demonstrate God’s involvement in human lives. God uses miracles to reveal Himself, His character, and His purpose to us through miraculous measures that are otherwise unexplainable. Miracles provide evidence of God’s existence, power and authority. Miracles transcend human understanding and cause people to recognize that God is active in the world.The Old and New Testament both provide many examples of miracles. But what about today? Do miracles still happen today?  Believing in miracles will always require faith in things unseen. We do not believe without evidence. However, there are many archaeological, historical and eye witness accounts of miracles. While skeptics will always be leery of personal testimonies. We need only look to our judicial system for validation. Even the courts take compiled eye witness testimony as evidence to establish facts and reach verdicts.Do miracles still happen? Absolutely! In this episode, we will lay out a Biblical defense of miracles as well as provide the listener with a few personal eye witness accounts of these events. Thank you for listening. Let’s keep building! Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam
How to Overcome Regret
Jul 17 2023
How to Overcome Regret
In today’s episode we’re going to talk about how to manage and overcome regrets. Regret is a feeling of sadness, disappointment or sorrow, which is caused by something that has happened to us, something we have done or something we wish we had done differently. Most often we regret things we feel are too late to change. A recent study asked people in an end of life hospice care facility what their greatest regrets were. Those interviewed admitted they were dying with regrets. However, many people are currently living with regrets. We are well aware of how Satan tries to use condemnation against us. However, improperly managing regrets can lead us to self-condemnation. Regret is a thief, it makes you look back while robbing you of happiness. Regrets magnify the negative and blind us to the positive in your life. An unhealthy view of regret can leave us with an unhealthy view of ourselves. God wants to help you overcome your regrets so you can get back to living a happier life. In today’s episode, we’ll take a closer look at how Peter and Judas managed regret. We’ll also learn how Paul overcame his regrets. We will also lay out practical steps that will help you manage and overcome regrets in a healthy and godly manner. If you’re ready to overcome your regrets, then sit back, listen and let God help you. Thank you for listening. Let’s keep building!Support the showVisit the link below and tap support to financially sponsor the Building Great Lives mission.http://buildinggreatlivespodcast.com/Feel led to partner with our global ministry? 100% of all donations go directly to our global missions and humanitarian efforts. https://venmo.com/u/Trent-Gilliam-3https://www.paypal.me/RevTrentGilliamConnect on social media. https://instagram.com/revgilliamhttps://www.facebook.com/trent.gilliam