DID
DID DRIVE
DID DRIVE THROUGH ASHES, APPLYING THEM WITH A LONG SWAB
TO KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE.
>> AND ON THIS ASH WEDNESDAY,
WE WANT TO INTRODUCE TO TWO
MINNESOTANS WHO HAVE BECOME
BREAKOUT STARS IN THE PODCAST
WORLD. ONE IS A PRIEST FROM
DULUTH, THE OTHER A BIBLE STUDY
AUTHOR. ON JANUARY 1ST, THEY
LAUNCHED A PODCAST CALLED
THE BIBLE IN A YEAR. AND WHAT
HAS HAPPENED SINCE YOU COULD SAY
IS NOTHING SHORT OF MIRACULOUS.
>> THAT'S BECAUSE THERE
ARE NEARLY TWO MILLION PODCASTS
FLOATING AROUND APPLE ITUNES,
SPOTIFY READY FOR YOU
TO DOWNLOAD RIGHT NOW.
>> EVERYTHING FROM DAILY
NEWS AND INTERVIEW SHOWS LIKE
THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE AND THE
NEW YORK TIMES, THE DAILY POLICE
FORADA TRUE CRIME FROM DATELINE
NOW OVER THE COMEDY WITH CONAN.
IRONICALLY, IT'S THE FACT THERE
ARE SO MANY PODCASTS, SO MANY
VOICES VYING TO BE HEARD
THAT GAVE FATHER MIKE SCHMITZ
FROM THE DIOCESE OF DULUTH
THE IDEA TO CREATE ANOTHER ONE.
>> THERE ARE SO MANY VOICES
THAT ARE SAYING STUFF AND A LOT
OF THEM ARE SAYING REALLY WISE
THINGS. AND EVEN WITH THOSE WISE
THINGS THAT I ALLOWED MYSELF TO
LISTEN TO , I FELT
MYSELF GETTING CONSTANTLY
DISTRACTED AND ALSO DISTRESSED
BY JUST LIKE THIS CONSTANT
BOMBARDMENT. AND SO I THOUGHT
I NEED IS WHAT I NEED IS
SOMETHING THAT'S MORE PERMANENT
THAT IS DEEPER, THAT IS MORE
ETERNAL THAN JUST ANOTHER VOICE.
>> FATHER MIKE, AS HIS STUDENTS
CALL HIM, HE IS THE CHAPLAIN
OF UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA.
DULUTH DECIDED OTHERS MIGHT BE
FELING THE SAME WAY. SO
HE PITCHED AN IDEA TO ASCENCION,
A MULTIMEDIA CATHOLIC PUBLISHER.
>> I WENT TO ASCENCION,
THE PUBLISHER, AND I SAID, WOULD
YOU BE OPEN TO THIS IDEA OF ME
READING THE BIBLE IN THE COURSE
OF ONE YEAR WITH A LITTLE BIT
OF COMMENTARY? AND THEY SAID
WE'VE BEEN WANTING THIS
FOR YEARS. WE JUST DIDN'T KNOW
WHEN OR WHO.
>> FATHER MIKE THEN TURNED
TO FELLOW MINNESOTAN JEFF CAVINS
TO HELP WITH THE HOW I'M THE
FOUNDER AND CREATOR OF THE GREAT
ADVENTURE BIBLE STUDY. CAVINS
BIBLE STUDY TAKES THE 14
NARRATIVE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE
AND STRINGS THEM TOGETHER SO
READERS CAN FOLLOW THE STORY
WITHOUT GETTING LOST
AND DISCOURAGED.
AND DISCOURAGED. >> ONCE YOU HAVE THAT , YOU HAVE
THAT KEY TO HOW TO HOW TO READ
THE BIBLE AS A AS AMAZING STORY.
>> YOU REALLY HAVE GOLD. YOU
HAVE YOU HAVE SOMETHING PRECIOUS
WITH CAVINS BIBLE TIMELINE AS
THE TEMPLATE.
THE TEMPLATE. >> FATHER MIKE SAT DOWN IN A
STUDIO IN A SPARE ROOM
AND STARTED RECORDING BY
I'M FATHER MIKE SMITH AND YOU'RE
LISTENING TO THE BIBLE IN THE
YEAR PODCASTER OR WE ENCOUNTER
GOD'S VOICE AND LIVE LIFE
THROUGH THE LENS OF SCRIPTURE.
THE PODCASTER LAUNCHED
ON JANUARY 1ST GENESIS CHAPTER
ONE IN THE BEGINNING, GOD
CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE
EARTH AND GOD SAID LET THERE BE
LIGHT.
LIGHT.
LIGHT. >>
LIGHT. >> AND THERE WAS LIGHT
AND SOMETHING YOU MIGHT SAY
MIRACULOUS HAPPENED. SOMEBODY
CALLED ME RIGHT ABOUT I THINK
JANUARY 2ND AND THEY SAID YOUR
PODCAST IS NUMBER ONE IN THE
COUNTRY AND SAID MINNEOTA AMONG
RELIGION. AND THEY SAID NO,
IT'S NUMBER ONE. I SAID, OH,
COME ON . AND I WENT ON TO APPLE
AND I LOOKED AND SURE ENOUGH, IT
WAS NUMBER ONE RIGHT OUT OF THE
GATES. IT BLEW PAST
THE PODCASTER BEHEMOTH'S AND IT
STAYED IN THE TOP FIVE EVER
SINCE WE ARE APPROACHING
I BELIEVE IT'S CLOSE TO TWENTY
MILLION DOWNLOADS NOW AND WE'RE
OVER AND WE'RE ONLY A MONTH INTO
IT AND IT'S CONTINUING TO GROW.
>> THE AVERAGE PODCAST GETS IN A
MONTH. ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY
LISTENERS. AND SO IT'S NOT
TYPICAL THAT A PODCAST HAS
THOUSANDS, TENS OF THOUSANDS OR
MILLIONS OF LISTENERS. THAT'S
VERY, VERY RARE THAT THAT
HAPPENS.
HAPPENS.
HAPPENS. >> YOU AND I SAID MAINZER,
A PODCASTER HERSELF AND AUTHOR
OF SO YOU WANT TO START A
PODCAST ATTRIBUTES
PODCAST ATTRIBUTES THE PHENOMENAL SUCCESS OF THE
BIBLE IN A YEAR TO FATHER MIKE'S
POPULARITY AND PRESENCE
ON YOUTUBE PRESENTS THE BEST
SELLING GREAT ADVENTURE BIBLE
SERIES AND THE PLATFORM PROVIDED
BY ASCENSION PUBLISHING.
>> IF YOU WANT TO CHECK ALL
THE BOXES OF WHAT MAKES A SHOW
SUCCESSFUL AND WHAT MAKES IT
MORE LIKELY TO TOP THE CHARTS,
HE CERTAINLY HAD A LOT OF THOSE
PIECES IN PLACE ALREADY.
>> CAVINS AGREES, BUT SAYS
THAT ONLY EXPLAINS A BIT
OF THEIR SUCCESS.
>> I REALLY THINK THERE'S
A MYSTERY HERE AND THAT THIS
BEACON OF LIGHT, WHAT
WE CONSIDER THE WORD OF GOD,
THE BIBLE HAS RISEN IN THE MIDST
OF SO MUCH UNCERTAINTY AND
IN BAD NEWS .
>> AND IT DOES APPEAR
THE PODCAST HIT AT THE PERFECT
TIME. A RECENT PEW RESEARCH
CENTER STUDY FINDS DURING
COVID AMERICANS IN PARTICULAR
TURNED TO THEIR FAITH
WITH NEARLY THREE OUT OF TEN
SAYING THE PANDEMIC STRENGTH.
AND IT ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT THE BIBLE CAN DO IS SAY,
OK, NO, THIS STORY IS BIGGER
THAN TWENTY TWENTY ONE.
THE STORY IS BIGGER THAN TWENTY
TWENTY. THIS STORY IS BIGGER
THAN AMERICA. THIS STORY IS
BIGGER THAN A PANDEMIC.
AND YOU'RE PART OF THIS STORY
AND IT'S A STORY THESE TWO
MINNESOTANS ARE COMMITTED
TO SHARE EVERY DAY UNTIL THE END
OF REVELATION ON DECEMBER
THIRTY. FIRST, I'M PRAYING
FOR YOU.
FOR YOU.
FOR YOU. >> PLEASE PRAY FOR EACH OTHER
AND PRAY FOR ME. YOU LEAMANCZYK
IF YOU'D LIKE TO LISTEN, YOU CAN
FIND THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
ON SPOTIFY OR