{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Ffirstadam-a-transparent-podcast-for-men.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Fdisappointed-rECn1YRj","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Disappointed","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/b3d8bd95-1240-4610-a614-5ed29ecbcff1/f2771dc9-81e9-47f1-991c-cf6fb5080be8/disappointedmiddle_main.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"How many of us were taught growing up: Be strong. Don’t struggle. Figure it out yourself. Keep performing. Don’t let people down.\nAnd somewhere along the way, many men quietly started believing the same thing about God.\n\nThat His love has to be earned.\nThat His approval rises and falls with performance.\nThat when you fail, drift, struggle, or fall back into old habits… God steps back in disappointment.\n\nSo men hide.\nThey isolate.\nThey stay busy.\nThey distract themselves.\nThey promise to “do better next time.”\n\nBut internally, they carry exhaustion, shame, pressure, and the constant feeling that they are never quite enough.This conversation goes straight into the internal battle many men never talk about, the pressure to perform spiritually, the fear of failure, the weight of condemnation, and the exhausting cycle of trying to earn what was already given through Jesus.\n\nWe talk directly to the man who feels distant from God… The man who still believes he has to clean himself up before coming back…The man who talks to everyone else about strength while quietly falling apart internally.\n\nThis is a conversation about identity, grace, shame, sonship, and the kind of freedom men are desperate for but rarely know how to receive.\nBecause a lot of men don’t need another motivational speech.They need rest. They need truth. They need to stop approaching God like employees trying to keep a position and start approaching Him like sons who already belong.\n\nIf you’ve been carrying spiritual exhaustion, hiding in silence, or feeling like God is disappointed in you, this episode is for you. We hope it will challenge the lies you have believed for years and remind you that maybe God isn’t asking you to work harder.\n\nMaybe He’s simply asking you to come home."}